Effect of Graphite Filler on the Abrasive Wear Behavior of Polyamide66 Based Composites Using Taguchi Methodology

The aim of this research article is to investigate the effect of graphite filler on the abrasive wear behavior for Polyamide66 based composites using Taguchi’s design of Experiments (DOE) methodology. An Orthogonal array (L16) is used to investigate the optimum wear rate of the composites by considering %graphite reinforcement, normal load, sliding velocity and sliding distance as control parameters. Wear behavior of the composite specimens is investigated using pin-on-disc test rig. Orthogonal array (L16), mean, standard deviation, Signal-to-Noise (S/N) ratio and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) are employed to evaluate optimal test parameters of the composite for wear resistance. The experimental results demonstrates that the normal load and %reinforcement are the major parameters influencing the wear rate of all samples, and sliding velocity and sliding distance were found to have a negligible effect on the wear rate. However, at higher normal load and velocities the wear rate is marginally increased. In order to validate the results obtained through DOE methodology, micro structural study is carried out by using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)