A Review on Tribology of Particulate Filled Polymer Composites: In the Context of Marble Dust Filled Polyester

Abstract

Polymers and their composites are the rapidly growing class of materials brought revolution in the industries with their high wear resistance properties along with high specific strength, low density and high stiffness. An economical and traditional way to improve the properties of the polymers in order to make them suitable for various industrial applications is to reinforce them with short fibers and ceramic fillers. Another advantage of using these materials in the wear related industrial applications is that the properties of these composite materials can be modified at a wide range as per the requirement in order to overcome the tentative technical problems. The role of particulate fillers on the tribological behavior of polymers in dry sliding conditions have been discussed and emphasis is given on the wear response of the polymers incorporated with non-conventional particulate fillers like, industrial and construction wastes. The dry sliding wear response of micro-sized waste marble dust (a construction waste) filled polyester composites is presented and the mechanisms of wear loss are also discussed in brief.