Porosity and tribological performance analysis on new developed metal matrix composite for brake pad materials

This paper deals with the development and performance of metal matrix composite for brake pad with NiSO4 as filler materials in terms of manufacturing ability and a good amount of porosity. Microstructure and surface roughness of the samples are analysed using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) respectively. Energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) are used to detect elemental distribution in the sample. X-ray diffraction (XRD) compound phase analysis is used to find the presence of compound in the brake pad samples. The analysis shows that brake pad compounds are present in original form. Thermal property analyser shows that thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity of developed brake pad are more than market available brake pads. Sufficient amount of porosity is observed with gas sorption analyser (GSA) which is useful for conductive and convective heat transfer and preventing the overheating of brake pad system. The design of experiment and experimental analysis leads to the conclusion of near optimum parameter combination for maximum coefficient of friction and minimum wear rate. This paper reveals that the developed brake pad is better than selected market available composite brake pads on basis of hardness, thermal property, porosity distribution, and tribological performance analysis. The developed brake pad may be one of the good options for the commercially use in near future.