Abrasive wear behavior of sintered steels prepared with MoS2 addition

Sintered steels containing molybdenum di sulphide powders were developed for application as bearings, gears, connecting rods, etc. Abrasive wear characteristics of these materials are investigated as the machine elements also need to have a good abrasive wear resistance. Materials with base composition Fe-C-Cu and Fe-C-Cu-Ni containing varying levels of MoS2 were developed from elemental powders. Compressive strength, hardness and density are influenced by the addition of MoS2. Abrasive wear tests were conducted by sliding against the SiC abrasive sheet at room temperature. MoS2 added material exhibited a high coefficient of friction and good wear resistance compared to the base composition. The artificial neural network model developed predicts the wear volumes, which are in agreement with the experimentally measured data. � 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.