Electrical sliding wear behavior of C/C-Cu composites

A novel C/C-Cu composite with excellent wear resistance was fabricated by infiltrating molten Cu alloy into C/C preforms.The tribological behavior of the composite block with Cu ring counterpart was evaluated using an MM-2000 friction and wear tester.The worn surface morphologies of the composite blocks and Cu rings were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy.The influences of load and electric current on the tribological behavior of the composites were investigated.The results show that the wear rate of the composites increases with increasing load and electric current.The friction coefficient increases firstly and then drops with rising electric current, following a single peak curve.The peaks of 30 and 70 N appear in 10 A, while that of 50 N appears in 5 A.This may be related to surface toughness.The electric heat on the frictional surface might be the main reason for melting surface on Cu ring counterpart.