Investigation of the wear products of austenitic manganese cast irons

We study the wear products of austenitic manganese irons. We have shown that the mechanism of fracture of these alloys (and, correspondingly, the formation of wear products) depends on both the structural-phase composition of the alloys and the load-speed characteristics of external friction. Under conditions of boundary friction, the average size of wear particles varies from 0.1 to 3.0 mum. In the case of oxidative wear, among its products we have found (Cr, Fe)(2)O-3 and Fe3O4 oxides, which are component parts of the secondary structures of oxide origin. We have established that the fracture of the alloys occurs also along the boundaries of graphite inclusions, and it is especially intense under conditions of the onset of seizure for specific loads exceeding 5.0 MPa and a slip velocity of 0.628 m/sec.