Pantcho Stoyanov

Experimental and numerical atomistic investigation of the third body formation process in dry tungsten/tungsten-carbide tribo couples

The third body in tungsten/tungsten-carbide sliding systems is studied using a combination of experiments and atomistic simulations. Ex situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and focused ion beam analysis of the structural and chemical changes near the surfaces reveals that sliding of tungsten against tungsten-carbide results in plastic deformation of the W surface, leading to grain refinement, and the formation of a mechanically mixed amorphous layer on the WC counter body. Molecular dynamics simulations of W/WC sliding couples exhibit the formation of a nanoscale amorphous W/WC interface. The infrequent occurrence of atomic jamming events in the interface resulted in the emission of dislocations into the W bulk and the generation of amorphous shear bands in the WC counter body in agreement with the different third bodies observed in W and WC after the experiments.

Friction and wear mechanisms of tungsten-carbon systems: a comparison of dry and lubricated conditions.

The unfolding of a sheared mechanically mixed third-body (TB) in tungsten/tungsten carbide sliding systems is studied using a combination of experiments and simulations. Experimentally, the topographical evolution and the friction response, for both dry and lubricated sliding, are investigated using an online tribometer. Ex situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and cross-sectional focused ion beam analysis of the structural and chemical changes near the surfaces show that dry sliding of tungsten against tungsten carbide results in plastic deformation of the tungsten surface, leading to grain refinement, and the formation of a mechanically mixed layer on the WC counterface. Sliding with hexadecane as a lubricant results in a less pronounced third-body formation due to much lower dissipated frictional power. Molecular dynamics simulations of the sliding couples predict chemical changes near the surface in agreement with the interfacial processes observed experimentally. Finally, online topography measurements demonstrate an excellent correlation between the evolution of the roughness and the frictional resistance during sliding.

Microstructure Analysis of Aluminum Alloy and Copper Alloy Circular Shells After Multiaxial Plastic Buckling

Aluminum and copper cylindrical shells were plastically buckled under quasi-static and dynamic loading conditions with an Absorption Compression-Torsion Plasticity (ACTP: Patent No. WO 2005090822) combined mechanical testing device. Optical microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis were used to study the microscopic evolutions in the mechanically buckled aluminum and copper alloy samples. Optical microscopy showed evidence of the presence of second-phase particles in both the aluminum and copper alloys samples. Under dynamic loading aluminum samples showed more energy absorption as compared to copper samples. Material flow lines were more pronounced in the copper samples when observed by optical microscopy. The evidence that supports the increased energy absorption in the aluminum cylindrical shells can be supported by the TEM analysis more than the optical microscopy analysis. The TEM results showed highly oriented textured morphology with the presence of few dislocation cells structures and sub-structures.

Surface softening in metal-ceramic sliding contacts: an experimental and numerical investigation.

This study investigates the tribolayer properties at the interface of ceramic/metal (i.e., WC/W) sliding contacts using various experimental approaches and classical atomistic simulations. Experimentally, nanoindentation and micropillar compression tests, as well as adhesion mapping by means of atomic force microscopy, are used to evaluate the strength of tungsten-carbon tribolayers. To capture the influence of environmental conditions, a detailed chemical and structural analysis is performed on the worn surfaces by means of XPS mapping and depth profiling along with transmission electron microscopy of the debris particles. Experimentally, the results indicate a decrease in hardness and modulus of the worn surface compared to the unworn one. Atomistic simulations of nanoindentation on deformed and undeformed specimens are used to probe the strength of the WC tribolayer and despite the fact that the simulations do not include oxygen, the simulations correlate well with the experiments on deformed and undeformed surfaces, where the difference in behavior is attributed to the bonding and structural differences of amorphous and crystalline W-C. Adhesion mapping indicates a decrease in surface adhesion, which based on chemical analysis is attributed to surface passivation.

Scaling Effects on Materials Tribology: From Macro to Micro Scale

The tribological study of materials inherently involves the interaction of surface asperities at the micro to nanoscopic length scales. This is the case for large scale engineering applications with sliding contacts, where the real area of contact is made up of small contacting asperities that make up only a fraction of the apparent area of contact. This is why researchers have sought to create idealized experiments of single asperity contacts in the field of nanotribology. At the same time, small scale engineering structures known as micro- and nano-electromechanical systems (MEMS and NEMS) have been developed, where the apparent area of contact approaches the length scale of the asperities, meaning the real area of contact for these devices may be only a few asperities. This is essentially the field of microtribology, where the contact size and/or forces involved have pushed the nature of the interaction between two surfaces towards the regime where the scale of the interaction approaches that of the natural length scale of the features on the surface. This paper provides a review of microtribology with the purpose to understand how tribological processes are different at the smaller length scales compared to macrotribology. Studies of the interfacial phenomena at the macroscopic length scales (e.g., using in situ tribometry) will be discussed and correlated with new findings and methodologies at the micro-length scale.

Evaluation of Advanced Adhesives for Aerospace Structures

Polymer adhesives are finding increased use in panel joining applications in aircraft and aerospace structures where the applied stresses permit their use and where a uniform stress distribution is needed. One such adhesive, Hysol EA-9394™, was compared to three other formulations in this study. The new formulations were Hysol EA-9396, Hysol EA-9396 filled with nickel nanofibers and mixed by machine (Jamesbury Blender), and Hysol EA-9396 filled with nickel nanofibers and hand mixed in the laboratory. The comparison consisted of measuring shear lap strengths of aluminum test pieces bonded together with the candidate adhesives. The mechanical tests were supplemented by a Weibull analysis of the strength data and by a visual inspection of the failure mode (adhesive/cohesive). The lap shear strengths (fracture stress values) of all three Hysol EA-9396 adhesives were greater than that of the baseline Hysol EA-9394 polymer.