An experimental and analytical approach to study the sliding wear performance of epoxy composites with steel wire and glass fiber reinforcement

This study investigates the sliding wear behavior of hybrid epoxy composites reinforced with alternating layers of glass fiber mats and steel wire mesh. The objective is to enhance the wear resistance of glass fiber-epoxy composites with the incorporation of steel wire mesh. Three composite types with different stacking sequences are fabricated using the hand layup technique. Dry sliding wear tests are conducted using a pin-on-disc test rig under various operating conditions, following to ASTM G99 standard. Taguchi analysis with L 25 orthogonal array identifies sliding velocity as the most influential factor on wear rate, followed by normal load. Steady-state wear analysis is performed to evaluate the effect of each significant factor independently. Analysis of variance results show sliding velocity significantly affects wear rates, contributing 67.63% for glass-epoxy composite (G11) and more than 75% for glass-steel-epoxy hybrid composites (G7S4 & G4S7). A regression model, based on experimental data, predicts specific wear rates with error margins of 3.17% for glass-epoxy composite and less than 2% for glass-steel-epoxy composites. Additionally, electron microscopy is used to analyze worn surfaces, revealing the primary wear mechanisms.