The Role of the Counterbody’s Oxide on the Wear Behavior of HSS and Hi-Cr

The wear behavior of two high-speed steels and a high-chromium cast iron with cryogenic treatments was evaluated using a pin-on-disc configuration. An ASTM A36 steel disc, oxidized previously in a furnace at 950 °C, was used as a counterbody with the goal of developing an accurate representation of the industrial calamine formed on the surface of steels under industrial conditions. This is a new perspective to evaluate the real contribution of the normal load, sliding velocity and heat treatments on the wear phenomena of hot rolls. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction were used to correlate the wear rate, friction coefficient and wear mechanisms to the microstructure, hardness and types of oxides that formed on the counterbody. Experimental results showed a complex relation between the normal load, the sliding velocity and the interaction with counterbody, which establishes the wear rates and friction coefficients.