The friction behaviour of epoxy floor tiles filled by carbon and sand nanoparticles when rubber footwear is sliding against them is investigated. Electrostatic charge (ESC) generated from friction is measured. Based on the experiments, it was found that friction coefficient displayed by composites filled by both sand and carbon nanoparticles at dry and water wet sliding represented relatively higher values than that observed for composites filled by either carbon or sand nanoparticles. ESC generated on dry rubber sole after sliding had lower values than that measured for epoxy composites. ESC generated on water wet epoxy composites represented very low values relative to dry sliding. ESC decreased with increasing carbon content. In the presence of nanoparticles of carbon in the matrix of epoxy, ESC transfer would be easier, where sand gained higher positive ESC due to its rank in the triboelectric series. The role of carbon was to distribute the ESC uniformly on the two contact surfaces. Material transfer such as sand and carbon nanoparticles from epoxy into rubber surface as well as water film would control the intensity of ESC and consequently the adhesion between the two contact surfaces.
Ali et al. (2018) studied this question.