FRICTION BRAKING PERFORMANCE OF NANOFILLED HYBRID FIBER REINFORCED PHENOLIC COMPOSITES: INFLUENCE OF NANOCLAY AND CARBON NANOTUBES

Abstract

Graphite lubricated phenolic-based friction composites filled with nanoclay and Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) and reinforced with lapinus and Kevlar fibers have been successfully fabricated for evaluation of their physical, chemical, mechanical and tribological properties, respectively. The increase in nanoclay and MWCNT contents led to the increase in bulk physical properties such as void contents, ash contents, water absorption and compressibility. The impact, tensile and flexural strengths get affected deleteriously when complemented by lapinus and kevlar fibers in the composites. However, with the increase in nanoclay and MWCNT contents the μ-performance, friction fade resistance and friction recovery enhanced whereas, friction fluctuations, stability and variability coefficients have been observed to be dependent on the composition. The addition of nanoclay and MWCNT raises the disc temperature whereas wear resistance of the friction composites increases with the decreasing in nanoclay and MWCNT contents. Comprehensively, it is found that with the higher nanoclay: MWCNT ratio (i. e., 1.375:1.375 wt.%) overall frictional response (μp = 0.386) is enhanced, showed lowest fading (fade = 22.80%) and excellent recovery performance (recovery = 130.37%). Finally, the wear surface morphology studies have been done by using scanning electron microscope (SEM) to analyze the wear mechanisms qualitatively by understanding nature of the friction contact patches.