Subsurface deformation and damage accumulation in aluminum–silicon alloys subjected to sliding contact

The study of plastic deformation and damage accumulation below the contact surfaces is important in order to understand the dry sliding wear behaviour of aluminum alloys. Experimental evidence exists for the nucleation of voids and microcracks around second phase particles in the material layers adjacent to the contact surface. Propagation of these cracks at a certain depth below the surface may lead to the creation of long, thin plate-like wear debris particles. This work studied the deformation processes during sliding wear by means of metallographic observations of subsurface layers in an Al–7% Si (A356 Al) alloy and by finite element analyses. Specifically, the accumulation of subsurface stresses and strains was investigated, using a coupled structural-thermal finite element model based on the Voce-type exponential stress–strain relationship obtained from the sliding wear tests. Additionally, temperature and strain rate effects were taken into account using a constitutive equation based on Johnson–Cook and Cowper–Symonds models.