Tribological performance of mineral deposits from Armenia as the filler material in PPS was studied. These deposits are a complex mixture of inorganic compounds. Samples with the fillers in required proportions were prepared by compression molding and sliding tests were performed in a pin-on-disk configuration for 6hours. The applied contact pressure was 0.65 MPa and the sliding speed was 1 m/s. The counterface was a disk of hardened tool steel (55–60 HRC) and finished to a surface roughness of 0.1 µm Ra. The abrasivity tests on these fillers showed that some of the filler were highly abrasive. Steady state wear rate in the case of PPS composites with abrasive fillers was not lowered regardless of the filler particle size or filler treatments. The coefficient of friction with abrasive filler particles was not greatly affected by the addition of the filler. With the addition of PTFE to non-abrasive filler materials, steady state wear rate was significantly reduced. This reduction in wear was attributed to the development of thin and uniform transfer film on the counterface during sliding. The coefficient of friction in this case was also reduced significantly, indicating the effectiveness of PTFE as a solid lubricant. Transfer films and worn pin sample surfaces were investigated by optical microscopy, AFM, SEM, and XPS in order to examine surface topography, surface texture, and chemical reactive species. It was concluded that the formation of a thin and uniform transfer film during sliding was responsible for the reduction of wear of the filled-polymer composites.
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