Significant friction and wear-reduction role of attapulgite nanofibers compounded in PEEK-Based materials

Attapulgite is one kind of phyllosilicate minerals of abundant reserves and rather low costs, and the unique structure of attapulgite have attracted wide attention from fields of photocatalysis and dye adsorption etc. In the present work, exfoliated attapulgite nanofibers were incorporated into polyetheretherketone (PEEK) and PEEK filled with short carbon fibers (CF), respectively. Role of attapulgite in tribo-performance of the PEEK-based materials was explored. Our results demonstrate that addition of attapulgite into pure PEEK reduces substantially wear of the polymeric matrix. More interestingly, adding low-loading attapulgite nanofibers into CF-reinforcing PEEK lowers greatly the friction and wear. The hybrid nanocomposites developed in the present work is very promising for applications under harsh sliding conditions. Thorough characterizations of the worn surfaces reveal that physio-chemical products of attapulgite nanofibers exert an important influence on growth of a resilient tribofilm.