Investigating high-temperature wear behavior and mechanism of (TiC+TiB+La2O3)/TC4 composites via finite element simulation and experiments

A pin-on-disk friction model was proposed based on the Archard theory, incorporating the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) remeshing technique and the Umeshmotion subroutine in Abaqus software. The model simulated the friction process between (TiC+TiB+La 2 O 3 )/TC4 composites and GCr15 steel, focusing on wear depth and stress-strain evolution. Meanwhile, the worn surface and cross-section of the composites were examined using advanced characterization techniques, and the friction behavior of the composite material was thoroughly investigated based on experimental observations and simulation results. The results indicate that the contact pressure during the wear process is non-uniformly distributed across the contact surface. The leading edge in the sliding direction experiences high normal stress and sliding shear stress under the combined action of the applied normal load and friction force. Consequently, this region exhibits the maximum equivalent stress and plastic deformation. With increasing friction temperature, the wear mechanism gradually transitions from severe abrasive wear to a combination of severe oxidative wear and slight adhesive wear. When the friction temperature reaches 500 °C, both the coefficient of friction and wear volume attain their minimum values, measuring 0.288 and 0.568 mm 3 , respectively. On one hand, the dense and flat tribo-layer generated on the worn surface contains a large amount of friction oxides, which acts as a solid lubricant, inhibiting the sliding shear stress generated during the friction process. On the other hand, the reinforced phases within the subsurface deformed zone disperse the stress concentration, thereby reducing crack initiation and hindering crack propagation in that region.