Influence of Different Contact Conditions on Friction Properties of AISI 430 Steel Sheet with Deep Drawing Quality

This article aims to investigate the influence of different contact conditions on the friction properties of an Nb-stabilized AISI 430 ferritic stainless-steel sheet with deep drawing quality. Three tribological tests were performed: pin-on-disk, bending under tension, and strip-tension test. Moreover, counter samples of a hard metal (WC-12%Co) with surface finishes of 0.27 and 0.54 mu m were used in the friction tests under dry and lubricated conditions. The influence of the texture and relative elongation of the strip on formability also were investigated. A comparative analysis of the results revealed that the coefficients of friction, wear, lubricant efficiency, and hardness measured below the wear surface indicated a strong dependence on surface roughness and the friction test type. The coefficients of friction obtained from the pin-on-disk test were higher than those obtained from the formability tests. In addition, the coefficient of friction increased with increasing relative elongation during the formability tests; it was higher in the bending-under-tension test than in the strip-tension test, mainly owing to the increasing strip surface roughness. The contact pressure during the formability tests was non-uniform during strip sliding under the tool. According to our results, for each friction condition in a specific area of the forming die, there is a value of the coefficient of friction, depending on the kinematic conditions. Therefore, the results can be used as input data to define design guidelines, improve productivity, and improve product quality from this steel sheet.