Comparative study on the wear behavior of long and short glass fiber reinforced plastics

In recent years, the fiber reinforced composites have been used more in tribological applications where the sliding surfaces requires a high wear resistance and a low co-efficient of friction. The growth of GFRP is significantly higher than that of steel. No engineer or designer can ignore the growth of GFRP, but the decision to use a new material is difficult, yet important. The comparative tribological performance of short and long glass fiber-epoxy composites, under varying load and sliding velocities, is reported in this investigation. Besides conventional weighing, the coefficient of friction, contact temperature, and wear rate were determined. The worn surfaces of the specimens were examined by a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). The wear mechanisms and the transitions that govern the tribological behavior of the composites between them are discussed in detail. It was found that the epoxy reinforced with a long glass fiber exhibited a reduced wear rate than the short glass fiber.