Evaluation of engineering ceramics and cermets performance in high-stress abrasion
Name: NATÁLIA DE OLIVEIRA SOUSA
Publication date: 08/07/2025
Examining board:
Name![]() |
Role |
---|---|
AMILTON SINATORA | Examinador Externo |
CHERLIO SCANDIAN | Coorientador |
JOSÉ JIMMY PENAGOS | Examinador Externo |
NATHAN FANTECELLE STREY | Presidente |
Summary: Initially, this master’s study compiled the wear behavior of various engineering ceramics and cermet (alumina, zirconia, ZTA, boron carbide and PCD), evaluating their performance regarding wear rate and wear resistance, compared to the reference material - hardmetal WC/Co), in a high-stress abrasion test under ASTM B611-21 standard loading conditions. The abrasive grit requested by the ASTM B611-21 standard is alumina 30 grit; however, in order to test less severe abrasives, Standard Brazilian Sand - IPT was also included in tests. Therefore, the equipment validation and a few tests were performed with alumina, as the evaluation of the wear behavior was studied mainly with sand. Wear resistance was correlated with mechanical properties and features for each material. Particle comminution was analyzed for both abrasives, comparing the size distribution before and after the tests, between different materials used as specimens. Sand was approximatelly 10 times less severe than alumina in tests with WC/Co and ZTA. In tests with all selected materials using sand, PCD presented the lowest wear rate, 10 times lower than WC/Co, as alumina ceramic exhibit the highest, 350 times greater. The second part of this work approached the effect of the load and the use of different abrasives on the high-stress abrasion and wear mechanisms. In an attempt to investigate conditions that are more representative of the real applications, Standard Brazilian Sand - IPT and Pellet feed, on of the main constituents on iron ore, were employed as abrasives. Zirconia, boron carbide, PCD, and the reference material WC/Co were chosen for further investigation at this stage. Wear
rate and wear mechanisms were correlated with the mechanical properties and features of the materials, with additional emphasis now placed on the relationship of the abrasives and the applied load of 65 N and 130 N. PCD remained the material with the lowest wear rates, now exhibiting both wear rate magnitude and wear mechanisms more closely aligned with those of WC/Co. Boron carbide also proved to be a promising candidate under milder conditions, showing wear behavior comparable to PCD and WC/Co in tests performed at 65 N with pellet feed.
Keywords: High-stress abrasion; engineering ceramics; cermets