Multilaboratory tribotesting: Results from the Versailles Advanced Materials and Standards programme on wear test methods

Abstract The Versailles Project on Advanced Materials and Standards (VAMAS) on wear test methods is one of the rapidly growing suite of projects initiated as a result of decisions following the 1982 Versailles Summit Meeting of the Heads of State or Governments of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, United States of America and representatives of the Commission of the European Communities. In the frame of VAMAS an international round robin comparison on the reproducibility and comparability of friction and wear data has been performed under conditions of dry sliding. The tribological behaviour of α-Al 2 O 3 ceramic and AISI 52100 steel combinations in a defined ball-on-disc configuration was determined under specified operating conditions of load, speed, temperature and sliding distance. For the different material combinations typical wear patterns were observed, including substantial material transfer for the steel-steel and steel-ceramic systems, but very minor wear was observed for the ceramic couple. Comparison of the numeric friction and wear data shows good agreement in tribological terms. The test methodology and the numeric tribological data may serve as a reference for other comparable tribotests.