Wear mechanisms and wear resistance of austempered ductile iron in reciprocal sliding contact

Austempered ductile irons (ADIs) are used in applications commonly exposed to severe contact conditions, and as a consequence wear damage frequently followed by failure of components. Hence, wear resistance of the material governs the final life time of a component. In the present work, the sliding wear resistance of two ausferritic spheroidal graphite ductile irons ADI1 and ADI2 used commonly in mining and construction equipment was investigated. ADI1 and ADI2 were heat treated to a similar strength, the volume fraction of the carbon-rich austenite in ADI1 and ADI2 was around 30% and 16%, respectively, and they both contained 10 - 13% nodular graphite. The wear tests were performed using a slider-on-flat-surface (SOFS) tribometer. Case-hardened steel plates made of a high strength steel, 22NiCrMo12-F, were used as the counterface. The wear tests were conducted under lubricated sliding contact at normal loads of 50, 100, 200 and 300 N, and at each load level sliding at 100, 200 and 300 m. The friction force between contacting surfaces was continuously monitored during sliding. The lubrication used in the present investigation was a mineral-oil-based paste commonly used in applications where high frictional heating is generated. Wear mechanisms of the tested specimens were investigated by means of optical and scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, and the wear damage was quantified using a 3D-profile optical interferometer. The main wear mechanisms, severe plastic deformation and surface delamination, were discussed concerning test conditions and material properties. The ADI1 grade with the higher volume of carbon-rich austenite displayed better resistance to sliding wear at high normal loads. The higher normal loads promoted larger deformation at and beneath the contact surface and initiated austenite transformation into hard martensite. Thus, it was concluded that the increase of wear resistance in ADI1 was due to the formation of marteniste. On the other hand, the ADI2 grade with higher silicon content showed lower wear resistance at high normal loads. This was associated with cracking of the proeutectoid ferrite presented in ADI2.