from the conferences organized by TANGER Ltd.
Wear resistance is vital for parts that require sliding contact. Different surface treatments have existed in industry and anodizing is the one of techniques for forming a protective oxide coating to improve hardness and abrasion resistance. Due to its good mechanical properties after precipitation hardening, the 6061-T6 aluminum alloy is extensively chosen in the aircraft industry. Its major alloying elements are magnesium and silicon. Thus, anodic coatings of good quality can be easily applied to this alloy. In this study, the effect of anodizing time on the tribological properties of 6061-T6 aluminum samples was evaluated. The aluminum samples were anodized in two different electrolytes of sulphuric and chromic acid to specify the effects of anodizing solution type on the tribological properties of the anodic coatings. The anodized specimens were tested using a ball-on-disc tribometer and tribological properties such as friction coefficient and specific wear rate were characterized. At the end of the work, optimum anodizing time was identified for best wear properties.
Keywords: Anodization, aluminum alloys, 6061 alloy, wear, tribology© This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.