Open Access Conference Proceedings

The subject of the investigations are cast pistons used in air compressors. The goal of this work was characterization of the wear of pistons made by aluminium-silicon alloys and showed differences in material characterisation for different aluminium-silicon alloy. A few kinds of pistons were chosen for investigations-pistons made by an aluminium-silicon alloy AK12 and AK7. The scope of the work included the observation of pistons using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy with X-ray microanalysis of chemical composition (EDS - energy dispersion spectrometer). Next the measurements of hardness were carrying out with the Vickers method. The research shows that the wear resistance increases depending on the amount of silicon. Microscopic examinations confirmed the presence of chemical elements which are part of the castings of AK12 and AK7 alloys.

Keywords: Air compressors, pistons, types of wear, microscopic examination

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