Spacers and supports belong to the critical elements in the structure of a nuclear fusion device, particularly, when they are installed in the vacuum or superconducting magnet system of the reactor. These supports have to sustain high loads while allowing a certain amount of tangential movement with low friction and without any stick-slip motion. Vacuum and cryogenic environments are extremely hostile for smooth sliding systems, because conventional liquid lubricants cannot be employed, and only a very limited number of materials for dry sliding systems under these conditions are available. In order to test the friction behaviour of support elements in the field coils of the fusion experiment WENDELSTEIN 7-X, a test rig was build which allows testing in liquid helium environment at 4.2 K, with a normal force up to 150 kN, and a sliding velocity of 0.1 mm/s in oscillating motion. First tests have shown that the apparatus is appropriate for simulating the sliding behaviour of support elements. As an example, a result of an earlier model test of an MoS2-coating is shown.
Aim of the investigation is to characterize selected PEEK-composites in vacuum environment. Oscillating sliding friction was investigated with a pin-on-disc configuration in high vacuum (10-5 mbar) at room temperature, -40 °C, +100 °C and +160 °C. The contact pressure was 1 MPa and 7 MPa respectively , the maximum sliding velocity 0.1 m/s. Furthermore, tests in ultra high vacuum (10-9 mbar) were carried out with flat and spherical pins at 1 MPa and 60 MPa respectively. Among the tested materials MoS2 filled PEEK shows the best tribological performance in vacuum. Particularly, in the lower temperature range and at higher loads the friction behaviour is improved by MoS2 content.
For tribological components working under extreme
conditions, such as vacuum, or broad temperature
ranges, it is often a problem to achieve acceptable
durability of their friction parts. Thus, new material
requirements are involved for these tribo-systems, in
particular regarding operability and reliability. At BAM,
several projects were conducted in the recent years,
dealing with the tribological properties of friction
couples at cryogenic temperature and in vacuum
environment. This paper describes the vacuum and ultra
high vacuum tribometers constructed at BAM and
presents experiments carried out with polymer
composites. The experiments presented were performed
with PEEK, filled with solid lubricants, against 304
steel with a pin-on-disc configuration in oscillating
sliding. Friction tests were carried out in vacuum in the
temperature range between -40°C and +160°C and in
ultra high vacuum at room temperature.
Influence of the Temperature on the Tribological Behaviour of PEEK Composites in Vacuum Environment
(2008)
This paper describes tribological experiments carried out with polyetheretherketone (PEEK), filled with carbon fibres and solid lubricants (polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), graphite or MoS2), against steel discs. Oscillating sliding tests were performed in high vacuum environment in the temperature range between -40°C and +160°C. Results indicate that MoS2 filled PEEK show the best tribological performance in vacuum. Particularly, in the lower temperature range and at higher loads the friction behaviour is improved by the MoS2 content.
Influence of solid lubricant fillers on the tribological behaviour of peek composites in vacuum
(2009)
Die tribologischen Eigenschaften von graphitgefüllten Polyimiden gegen Stahl 100Cr6 wurden an Luft, im Hochvakuum (l0⁻ ³ Pa) und in Wasserstoffumgebung bei verschiedenen Drücken (10³ Pa, 10⁴ Pa und 10⁵ Pa) untersucht. Zwei unterschiedliche Polyimid-Typen wurden eingesetzt, wobei Typ und Menge des Graphits variiert wurden.
Die Experimente wurden bei 3,1 MPa Kontaktdruck und einer Gleitgeschwindigkeit von 0,2 m/s bzw. 1 m/s durchgeführt. Die verschlissenen Oberflächen und die Morphologie des Materialübertrags auf die Stahl-Gegenfläche wurden mittels Lichtmikroskopie, REM, TEM und FTIR untersucht. Die Untersuchung zeigt, dass sowohl die Matrix als auch der Graphitanteil einen deutlichen Einfluss auf das Reibverhalten von Verbundwerkstoffen in Wasserstoffumgehungen haben können.