Effect of high temperatures on dry sliding friction and wear behaviour of CuCrZr copper alloy

Abstract Dry friction and wear behavior at high temperatures was investigated against an Al 2 O 3 ball in order to characterize the wear rate, coefficient of friction (COF), hardness and thermal friction behavior at different temperatures in the wear-treated zones of the CuCrZr copper alloy. Experiments were fulfilled using a pin-on-disk wear device with the aid of a temperature modulated wear device at room temperature, 100, 200 and 300 °C. The loads applied during wear are given as 3N, 5N and 7N, respectively. In order to examine the morphological structure of the worn surfaces, appropriate samples were prepared and SEM (scanning electron microscopy) device was used. Similarly, EDS (energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry) was applied to worn surfaces to examine the abrasive-material interaction. Against the hardness of the material at 25 °C, the hardness value in measurements at 300 °C showed a small increase. The COF value increased at 100 °C and then decreased, while the wear rate increased significantly as the temperature increased. The temperature increase starting from RT up to 300 °C weakened the internal structure of the CuCrZr alloy and caused an increase in the wear rate. XRD test was used to show the phases that may occur in CuCrZr alloy due to temperature and heat treatment.