Application of the Statistical Method to Analyze the High-Temperature Tribological Properties of Aluminum Composites

This study presents the statistical analysis of the high-temperature tribological properties of AA6061-SiC composites having 2.5 and 10 wt% SiC addition. The composites were fabricated through the liquid metallurgy method. The experiments were performed as per the fractional factorial design scheme. The ANOVA analysis identified the statistical significance of the influence of factor A (addition of SiC particles), factor B (applied load), factor C (sliding speed), and factor D (temperature) on the wear rate. Meanwhile, factors A and D were observed to present statistical significance on the friction coefficient. The main effects plots depicted that the wear rate and friction coefficient increased with the increase in factors B, C, and D. The heat map graphically revealed that experimental run 4 (2.5 wt% SiC, 10 N, 0.6 m/s, and 70 degrees C) produced the lowest wear rate. Meanwhile, experimental runs 8 (2.5 wt% SiC, 60 N, 0.6 m/s, and 350 degrees C) and 5 (10 wt% SiC, 60 N, 3 m/s, and 350 degrees C) produced the highest wear rate and friction coefficient, respectively. Furthermore, the interaction plots revealed the statistically insignificant interaction among the different factors.