Influence of water and oil immersion on the tribological properties of Excentrodendron hsienmu

Modern composite materials and lignum vitae are widely studied and used in water-lubricated bearings. Noise, wear and tear, environmental pollution, and limited resources restrict the application of these materials. Thus, alternatives to lignum vitae for water-lubricated bearings should be identified and developed. In this work, the chemical composition and mechanical and tribological properties of water-, vegetable oil-, and gear oil-immersed and wax- and water-extracted Excentrodendron hsienmu ( E. hsienmu ) samples were studied. Results showed that the friction coefficients of the water- and gear oil-immersed and waxand water-extracted E. hsienmu samples are significantly smaller than those of the wax- and water-extracted lignum vitae samples. The grinding crack widths of the water-extracted gear oil-immersed E. hsienmu samples are smaller than those of the water-immersed lignum vitae samples. The preliminary results show that it is possible to provide an environmentally friendly method that could replace lignum vitae and other composite materials for water-lubricated bearings.