Dry Sliding Wear and Friction Behavior of Cu-SiC Nanocomposite Coating Prepared by Pulse Reverse Electrodeposition

The dry sliding wear and friction behavior of Cu-SiC nanocomposite coatings prepared by pulse-reverse co-electrodeposition technique has been evaluated using a ball-on-disk wear instrument. The effect of variation in normal load and sliding speed on wear and friction behavior was studied. This behavior was compared with two other pure specimens, one prepared under conditions similar to those of the composite and the other by casting and rolling. From the wear test it was observed that the wear rate of the nanocomposite increases with an increase in normal load, whereas it decreases with an increase in sliding speed. The coefficient of friction increases with an increase in sliding speed. However, with normal load variation, it shows a minimum at an intermediate load. In all tests the composite shows the lowest wear rate and coefficient of friction except at the highest load tested, where it is observed to show a coefficient of friction similar to that of the electrodeposited pure Cu.