An investigation of lubricated friction and wear properties of Zn–40Al–2Cu–2Si alloy in comparison with SAE 65 bearing bronze

In this study, friction and wear characteristics of Zn–40Al–2Cu–2Si alloy were investigated in both as cast and heat-treated conditions over a range of pressure and sliding speed and the results were compared with those obtained from SAE 65 bearing bronze. The heat treatment was performed by solutionizing and quench ageing. It was found that the friction coefficients of both zinc-based alloy and bronze decreased with increasing pressure and sliding speed but their temperatures increased with these parameters. It was also found that the wear loss of the zinc-based alloy and the bronze increased with increasing pressure and sliding speed. The zinc-based alloy in both as cast and heat-treated conditions exhibited much higher wear resistance than the SAE 65 bronze, especially at pressures above 4 MPa. It was also observed that the quench-ageing treatment increased the hardness and the tensile strength of Zn–40Al–2Cu–2Si alloy considerably, but only a small improvement was obtained in the wear resistance of the alloy after this heat treatment.