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High Wear Resistance of Ultralow-Wear Polyethylene with Different Molecular Weights Under Different Contact Pressure

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Abstract

Ultralow-wear polyethylene (ULWPE), a type of polyethylene homocomposite with excellent wear resistance, has recently been reported; however, its underlying wear mechanism has yet to be clarified. In the current study, three different molecular weights of ULWPE from 205 to 748 kg/mol were experimentally evaluated on a multidirectional motion pin-on-disk wear tester under a contact pressure from 2 to 4 MPa, compared with conventional UHMWPE. The high wear resistance mechanism of ULWPE was investigated with respect to mechanical, microstructural, and surface properties. Compared with UHMWPE, ULWPE had excellent wear resistance. Structure and mechanical characterization showed that the crystallinity and lamellar thickness of ULWPE were significantly higher than those of UHMWPE, which endowed ULWPE with high hardness and strength. Despite its considerably smaller molecular weight than that of UHMWPE, ULWPE still had high interphase content, leading to its superior toughness. The crystallinity, lamellar thickness, Young’s modulus, yield stress, and elongation at break of ULWPE exhibited a downward trend with the increase of molecular weight. Conversely, the interphase content of ULWPE increased with the molecular weight increase. Among all the ULWPE samples, ULWPE with a molecular weight 748 kg/mol had the least wear, as a result of combined both excellent strength and adequate toughness. With an increase in contact pressure, the wear losses of different polymers tended to increase. The wear losses of the least wear ULWPE were 4.71 ± 0.04 mm3/Million Cycles (Mc), 5.11 ± 0.37 mm3/Mc, and 5.77 ± 0.62 mm3/Mc under 2, 3, and 4 MPa. Comprehensive strength and toughness reduced abrasive wear and adhesion wear, endowing ULWPE with excellent wear resistance.

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Acknowledgements

Thank Prof. Zikai Hua at Shanghai University and senior engineer Ru Shen at southwest Jiaotong University for their guidance and help during the testing. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [52035012, 51775460, 51905456, 52005418] and Capital Health Development Scientific Research Project [2020-2Z-40118].

Funding

This study was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant Nos. 52035012, 51775460, 51905456, 52005418], Capital Foundation of Medical Development [Grant No. 2020-2Z-40118].

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tribology Research Institute, School of Mechanical Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, 610031, China

    Wen Cui, Shu Yang, Xiaogang Zhang, Yali Zhang, Yilun Shao & Zhongmin Jin

  2. PetroChina Petrochemical Research Institute, PetroChina Synthetic Resin Key Laboratory, Beijing, 100195, China

    Xinle Li & Shixuan Xin

  3. Department of Orthopedics, Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, 100730, China

    Yanyan Bian & Xisheng Weng

  4. School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT, UK

    Zhongmin Jin

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  1. Wen Cui
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  2. Shu Yang
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Correspondence to Yali Zhang.

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Cui, W., Yang, S., Zhang, X. et al. High Wear Resistance of Ultralow-Wear Polyethylene with Different Molecular Weights Under Different Contact Pressure. Tribol Lett 70, 51 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11249-022-01595-2

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