Tribological Behavior of Nano-Modified NBR Materials in Sand Water-Lubricated Conditions

Nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) is widely used in water-lubricated material because of its excellent anti-friction and wear-resistant performance. NBR is severely worn in water containing sand particles. Nano-SiO₂ particles were modified by the silane coupling agent TESPT and filled into the NBR matrix, labeled as NBR-1. The modified nano-SiO₂ particles were uniformly dispersed in the NBR matrix. The nano-SiO₂ particles and micron SiO₂ particles were filled into the NBR matrix, labeled NBR-2 and NBR-3 as the control group. The three composite materials were subjected to friction and wear tests under sand water-lubricated conditions on the SSB-100 tribo-tester made by Wuhan University of Technology. The results showed that the friction coefficient of the three composite materials decreased as the load and sliding velocity increased under sand water-lubricated conditions. NBR-1 had the best friction performance under the same working conditions. Comparing to the sand water-lubricated wear of the three materials, the wear of composite materials was mainly furrow wear. The material loss of NBR-2 and NBR-3 was much greater than that of NBR-1, and NBR-1 material was more suitable for sandy water areas.