Wear Studies on Phenolic Brake-Pads Using Taguchi Technique

The present work considers wear performance of non-asbestos organic (NOA) brake-pad composite materials. The specimens were manufactured by conventional Powder Metallurgy Methods. The experiments was carried out in dry condition on universal MMW-1 tribometer by pin-on-disc configuration. Tests were conducted based on plan L27 orthogonal array generated through Taguchi technique and mathematical model were developed. The criteria “smaller-is-better” selected to examine the dry sliding behavior of developed composite materials. The wear rate and process variables (contact pressure, sliding velocity and cycles) were examined by analysis of variance (ANOVA) method using Minitab 19.1.1 software. Worn surface examination of the brake-pad materials was done using scanning electron microscope (SEM). The strongest influence on the wear rate was exhibited by the sliding velocity (52.61%), then follow contact pressure (30.47%) and the cycles (16.01%). The studies based on prediction and optimization concluded with confirmation tests.