A novel tribometer for investigating bushing wear.

Bushing wear is regarded as the main cause of Variable Stator Vanes (VSV) mechanism failure in compressor airflow control systems. In order to examine the bushing health status, a new tribometer was designed to evaluate the bushing frictional performance under various working conditions. These include high temperature, changing axial load, and reciprocating rotation. The prototype apparatus was validated in real-world operation conditions. Results indicate that key test environment parameters were well controlled during the operation. Bushing made of SP2515, SCP5050 and SCP50094 were tested at 364 °C. It is found that transfer films were formed because of polyimide adhesion on the spindle contacting surface. Furthermore, the wear coefficient of the special contact configuration was derived. Assessment based on frictional torque and wear resistance, SP2515 demonstrated the best tribological performance though polyimide is not applicable in the testing temperature. • A new tribometer was designed to evaluate the frictional performance of the bushing under the similar working conditions. • The reciprocating rotation was achieved by the sinusoidal reciprocating motion mechanism. • Description of a fast heating system with the ceramic heater rollers and cooling fan. • The wear coefficient of reciprocating rotation between a cylinder and a cylindrical ring was derived. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]