Dry-sliding tribological properties of nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy

This paper reports the tribological performance of the nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy under dry sliding against Si ₃N ₄ ceramic ball in ambient environment with varying applied loads and sliding speeds. Worn surfaces of the nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy were examined with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and an X-ray energy dispersive spectroscope (EDS). The wear debris of the samples were also analyzed by X-ray diffractometer (XRD). The wear rate of the nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy was of the magnitude of 10 ^-4 mm ³/m, which was lower than that of the coarse grained Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy. The friction coefficient of the nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy was almost the same as that of the coarse grained Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy. The Fe ₂SiO ₄ oxide layer was formed on the worn surface of the nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy. However, on the worn surface of the coarse grained Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy was found only a little Fe ₂SiO ₄. These results demonstrated that the nanostructure improved the wear resistance of the Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy, but did not significantly affect the friction coefficient. The wear mechanism of the nano-eutectic Fe ₈₃B ₁₇ alloy was delamination abrasion mainly.