Fundamental studies on friction and wear of engineering plastics

Engineering plastics having good mechanical properties are at present frequently used as materials for various machine elements. In this research, experimental investigations have been carried out regarding tribological factors such as friction and wear for five kinds of fundamental engineering plastics: non-reinforced polycarbonate, polyphenylene oxide, polyamide, polyacetal, and polybutylene terephthalate. It is clarified that the tribological properties, especially the wear properties of the engineering plastics are influenced by the friction conditions and heat transfer characteristics on contact surfaces. However, no clear effects of mechanical strength such as tensile strength or hardness are seen. Thus, the fundamental wear properties of engineering plastics are strongly influenced not only by their own thermal characteristics but also by those of contact surfaces.