Högskolan i Skövde

There has been much discussion about the beneficial uses of lamellar graphite iron in piston rings–cylinder liner systems, where a good combinations of both thermal and tribological properties are essential. The excellent tribological performance of lamellar iron under such sliding conditions is principally associated with lubrication behaviour of the graphite particles which are distributed as lamellas throughout the matrix. During sliding, graphite particles are extruded and smeared onto the counterfaces, act as solid lubricating agents and form a thin graphite film between the sliding surfaces. Although this process especially, during the running-in period significantly changes the sliding wear response of the components, the exact mechanism behind of this phenomenon has rarely been discussed in previous studies.

It is tribologically beneficial to keep the graphite open, particularly in applications where the scuffing issues do matter. In this thesis, the main causes involved in closing the graphite lamellas are discussed, with a focus on matrix plastic deformation that occurs during sliding. In first step, the relationship between graphite lamellae orientation and plastic deformation was investigated. To do so, two piston rings, belonging to the same two-stroke marine engine operated for different periods of time, were selected and compared to the unworn sample. The worn piston rings displayed a substantial decrease in both frequency and area fraction of the graphite lamellas. Most of the lamellas were closed as a result of plastic deformation of matrix. This happening was caused mainly by the interaction between abrasive particles and metallic matrix. Additionally, it was found that graphite lamellas parallel or near-parallel to the sliding direction exhibited maximum closing tendency under sliding condition.

In next step, to have a better understanding of the graphite film formation mechanism and matrix deformation role in closing the graphite lamellas, microindentation and microscratch testing were performed on typical lamellar iron. The qualitative results showed a similar mechanism involving in graphite contribution to lubricate the sliding surfaces. Moreover, microindentations made nearby the graphite lamellas demonstrated that the deformation of the matrix causes the formation of cracks in the centre of the graphite lamellas, compressing and then extruding the graphite from its natural position, irrespective of the lamellas′ size. Furthermore, it was found that subsurface graphite orientation had a large influence on the extrusion behaviour, in that, for graphite lamellas oriented towards the indenter, the effect was observed more pronounced.

Furthermore, an improved fully ferritic solution strengthened compacted graphite iron was produced for future wear studies. The effects of different Si levels and section thicknesses on tensile properties and hardness were investigated as well. The influence of Si content and section thickness on mechanical properties was revealed by improving the materials strength and slightly enhancing the hardness through increasing Si content. Besides, Si addition up to 4.5 wt% significantly affected the strength and elongation to failure of cast samples.

Lamellar graphite iron (LGI) is commonly used in diesel engine applications such as piston rings–cylinder liner where an excellent combination of physical and tribological properties is essential to avoid scuffing and bore polishing issues. The excellent tribological behaviour of LGI alloys is related to the graphite lamellas, which act as solid lubricant agents by feeding onto the tribosurfaces under sliding conditions. However, increasingly tighter emissions and fuel economy legislations and the higher demands on enhanced power and durability have encouraged both engine designers and manufacturers to introduce pearlitic compacted graphite irons (CGI) as an alternative material replacing LGI, although the poor machinability of pearlitic CGI alloys compared to the LGI remains a challenge.

The focus of this study is placed on investigating how the microstructure of LGI and CGI alloys affects their mechanical and tribological properties. This was initially undertaken by investigating representative, worn lamellar cast iron piston rings taken from a two-stroke large-bore heavy-duty diesel engine. As known that it is tribologically essential to keep the graphite open under sliding conditions, in particular under starved lubrication regimes or unlubricated conditions to avoid scuffing issues; however, this study revealed the closure of a majority of graphite lamellas; profoundly for those lamellas that were parallel to sliding direction; due to the severe matrix deformation caused by abrasion. Both microindentation and microscratch testing, which were used to crudely simulate the abrasion under starved lubricated condition in combustion chamber, suggested a novel mechanism of activating the graphite lamellas to serve as lubricating agents in which the matrix deformation adjacent to the graphite initially resulted in fracturing and then extrusion of the graphite lamellas.

Additionally, in order to investigate the relation between matrix constituents, mechanical properties and machinability of cast iron materials, solution-strengthened CGI alloys were produced with different levels of silicon and section thicknesses. The results showed significant improvements in mechanical properties and machinability while deteriorating the ductility. Moreover, multiple regression analysis, based on chemical composition and microstructural characteristics was used to model the local mechanical properties of high Si ferritic CGI alloys, followed by implementing the derived models into a casting process simulation which enables the local mechanical properties of castings with complex geometries. Very good agreement was observed between the measured and predicted microstructure and mechanical properties.