Sliding wear performance of polyamide 6-clay nanocomposites in water

Polyamide 6 (PA6) clay nanocomposites, a new class of specialty polymer, shows improved tribological properties under dry sliding conditions. In food and chemical industry, the polymeric materials are widely used in the machine elements due its excellent chemical inertness. Water, being a widely used solvent, tends to have contact with the machine elements and can either act as a lubricant or as a contaminant. Many factors such as the interaction of polymer with water, surface wettability, etc., play a major role on the friction and wear of polymers in aqueous conditions. This work reports the sliding wear performance of PA6 clay nanocomposites in water. Addition of clay affects the crystallinity of the nanocomposites, which in turn affects the plasticization. Plasticization of the surface by water causes increase in wear and decreases the coefficient of friction. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.