The research objective of this award is to determine how the dry sliding wear behavior and wear mechanisms of a range of recently-discovered, very high strength, nanostructured FeNiMnAl spinodal alloys vary with changes in microstructure such as phase size and composition. Testing will be performed at a range of speeds in air, argon and oxygen in order to understand the effects of local heating and of oxidation, including the role played by wear debris. The project will utilize a range of state-of-the-art techniques to characterize the pre- and post- wear specimens including transmission electron microscopy (TEM) coupled with X-ray spectroscopy; profilometry; X-ray diffraction; nanoindentation; cross-sectional scanning electron microscopy, and atom probe tomography (APT). The observed wear behavior will be modeled. The work will involve several collaborations: alloys will be drop cast at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) by Dr. Easo George; high temperature wear experiments will be carried out at the ORNL Tribology Research User Center in collaboration with Dr. Peter J. Blau; APT will be performed at ORNL with the aid of Dr. Mike K. Miller; and focused ion beam cross-sectioning/TEM will be performed with the aid of Professor Paul Munroe of the University of New South Wales, Australia.
If successful, the project will not only provide an understanding of the relationship between the microstructure, deformation processes and the wear behavior of FeNiMnAl spinodal alloys, leading to their possible commercial utilization, but will contribute to understanding the wear behavior of spinodal alloys as a class of materials, which have been little studied. It will also lead to the development of cutting edge techniques to study wear. The project will train both a Ph.D. student and several undergraduates. The results will be published in refereed journals and presented at various conferences.
