Galling wear between ASTM 6061 aluminum and grade D2 tool steel

Abstract

In the automotive industry, galling is a huge problem either for the tool life or the quality of the stamping metal component. Galling is a severe form of scuffing associated with gross damage to the surface or failure. This work aims to carry out a series of experiments of galling tests at different loads and similar roughness with 6061 aluminum and D2 steel, common materials used in automotive components and tools respectively. A tribometer was employed to generate Galling wear, the button-on-button configuration, according to the ASTM G-196-08 standard. The results show the threshold of minimum load without galling wear. Post-test-surface analysis of the specimens was conducted by confocal microscopy to identify the damage generated during the wear tests. Additionally, a couple of friction tests were carried only to illustrate the friction coefficient behavior under galling conditions.