Analysis of wear mechanism in TPU-steel contact pair by means of long stroke tribometer tests

A complete wear characterisation of a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) sliding against steel is presented. Wear tests were performed using a long stroke tribometer under sliding reciprocating movement and dry conditions. The dependence of some of the most significant parameters was studied. Before and after wear tests, complementary observations, analyses and measurements were also performed on both contacting materials. These various characterisations involved weight loss of TPU, physico-chemical and thermo- mechanical analyses of TPU, included topographical measurements and morphological observations of worn surfaces of contacting pairs and calculations of the temperature rise generated by friction.