Depth of Penetration as a Predictor of the Wear Polymers on Hard, Rough Surfaces

Abstract

Polymers were slid on rough, hard surfaces with normal loads which caused full penetration (real and apparent areas equal) and partial penetration (real less than apparent area). SEM photographs of full penetration showed that the polymer sheared off at an angle to the horizontal, the shear angles were 10.8, 12.6, and 18.9 deg for polyvinylchloride, polychlorotrifluoroethylene, and nylon 6/6, respectively. These shear angles correlated with the energy-to-rupture of the polymers and inversely with the wear of polyvinyl-chloride and polychlorotrifluoroethylene. In partial penetration experiments the wear of polyvinylchloride and polychlorotrifluoroethylene could be discriminated by the depth of penetration of the surface into the polymer. The penetration depth is a function of the polymer yield strength and the bearing area curve of the surface.