Apparatus for Thrust Wear Testing of Advanced Tribological Materials

This paper examines an apparatus developed for use in the wear testing of advanced bearing materials. A brief review of the applications of polycrystalline diamond as a tribological material is given as background for the development of the apparatus.

The apparatus tests materials in a sliding thrust wear mode in an area contact configuration. Cylindrical specimens are located on a concentric circle pattern, and the flat ends are mated together.

Through testing materials on this apparatus, certain tribological information is obtained concerning wear rate, friction coefficient, and threshold stress at various operating parameters. A review describes some of the testing performed on the apparatus as well as the results obtained in the testing of the various advanced tribological materials.