Tribological Performance of the Continuous Steel Fiber-reinforced Cu based Friction Material for Heavy-duty Braking Applications

Brake pads are the major components of the wind turbine, which primarily consists of metal matrix and ceramic reinforcements. The ceramic particles plunge out during the application of brakes, which in turn leads to the transformation of the wear mechanism from adhesive to abrasive wear. This increases the wear rate and therefore the study investigates the possible replacement of ceramic reinforcements with continuous fibers that exhibit high strength and compatibility. In recent years, Cu-based brake pads that are fabricated by powder metallurgy route are widely used in wind turbines. In this study, continuous fibers of stainless steel SS304 are reinforced in the Cu matrix by the casting method to preserve the fiber alignment. The fabricated composite is characterized for microstructure, microhardness, and tribological behavior. Besides, a comprehensive analysis of the wear mechanism in the developed composite is presented based on the surface morphology, elemental composition, and phase analysis.