Impact of spark plasma sintering process on tribo surface of Al/CNT composites

Spark Plasma Sintered Aluminium (SPSed Al) composites are widely used in various micro components of the engineering applications. This paper deals with the evaluation of tribological behavior of the SPSed Al composites with respect to the SPS process parameters. The multi-walled Carbon Nano Tubes (CNTs) are added to the SPSed Al composites to improve its wear resistance by a solid lubrication effect. The presence and distribution of CNT over the Al matrix are confirmed through the FESEM analysis and the crystallographic changes of the SPSed Al/CNT composites are examined using the XRD analysis. The hardness of the SPSed Al/CNT composite has been improved by the re-crystallization at the optimal SPS condition. It also influences the frictional wear behavior of the Al/CNT composites and it resulted in overcome of ploughing on the Al surface. The frictional wear behavior of the SPSed Al/CNT composites is optimized using the taguchi methodology and the minimum wear rate of 24.7 x 10(-6) g m(-1) and the CoF of 0.192 are obtained for the Al/CNT1 wt% composite sintered at 500 degrees C and ball milled at 300 rpm for 480 min. The worn surface of the Al/CNT1 wt% composite reveals that the mild abrasive wear is occurred at the optimal tribo condition.