Slurry Wear Characteristics of a Zinc-Based Alloy

An attempt has been made in this investigation to assess the wear behavior of a zinc-based alloy in slurry. The influence of the sand content of the slurry and traversal speed and distance on the wear response of the alloy has been examined. Tests were also conducted in the liquid-only medium to assess the role played by the suspended sand particles in the medium. Testing the samples in the liquid-only medium (i.e., without sand particles) caused maximum wear rate. It was also observed that an intermediate sand concentration in the liquid exists wherein the samples experienced maximum wear rate (although less than in the liquid-only medium). Further, increasing the speed of rotation of the specimens in the liquid plus sand environments led to higher wear rate while the trend tended to reverse in the sand-free liquid environment. The alloy initially displayed increased wear rate with increasing traversal distance. This was followed by the attainment of the maximum, a decrease in the wear rate and then a steady state value at longer traversal distances. Wear behavior of the alloy under different experimental conditions was further substantiated through the features of the affected wear surfaces and subsurface regions (perpendicular below the affected surfaces).