A Study on the Mechanical and Tribological Properties of Carbon Fabric/PTFE Composites

Carbon fabric reinforced polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) composites with different PTFE content, viz. 30, 40, 50, 60, and 70 vol%, were fabricated by a dispersion impregnation technique followed by a hot-press process. The composites were evaluated for their mechanical and tribological properties. The tribological tests were conducted on a friction and wear tester with a ring-on-block arrangement. The mechanical properties were also tested and their relationship with tribological properties was analyzed. The worn surface and wear debris were analyzed by a scanning electron microscope (SEM) to study the wear mechanism. It was found that the resin content had a great influence on both the mechanical properties and the tribological properties, and the tribological properties were correlated with the mechanical properties. The composite with 50 vol% PTFE showed promising tribological behaviors under the selected test conditions.