Design of Mated Parts Using Polymeric Materials with Enhanced Tribotechnical Characteristics

This paper reports a comparative study of the polymeric materials operating in conjugation with steel. In agricultural engineering, a significant role in structural materials belongs to polymer composites. This type of material is characterized by the low price, small technological cost, as well as acceptable processing characteristics. It has been found that it is necessary to form, for each type of mated parts, a set of materials that could maximally meet the operational conditions. To describe the operating conditions in more detail, they need to be generalized for the specific tribological and loading characteristics. Based on this, such load regimes were selected that correspond to the movable mated parts in sowing complexes. For these mated parts, it was necessary, in the course of the tribological study, to choose a material with minimal technological deviations but with enhanced tribotechnical characteristics.The result of this study has established that under the predefined conditions a polymer-composite material with the high-modulus filler PA-6.6+30 % F demonstrates the best tribophysical characteristics compared to the material PA-6.6. The proposed material, in conjugation with steel 1.1191, has a friction coefficient that is 38...41 % lower, while the temperature in the contact area is 8...12 % less, than that in conjugation with the material PA-6.6. Based on the metallographic analysis of friction surfaces, one can argue that a polymer composite with a high-modulus filler creates favorable conditions for their implementation in the moving units of machines.The results reported here make it possible to analyze and synthesize composite materials primarily for agricultural engineering, taking into consideration their tribological properties. The findings may be particularly interesting for service departments and enterprises producing parts for sowing complexe