WEAR BEHAVIOR OF CARBON NANOTUBE/HIGH DENSITY POLYETHYLENE COMPOSITES.

Carbon Nanotube/High Density Polyethylene (CNT/HDPE) composites were manufactured and tested to determine their wear behavior. The nanocomposites were made from untreated multi-walled carbon nanotubes and HDPE pellets. Thin films of the precursor materials were created with varying weight percentages of nanotubes (1%, 3%, and 5%), through a process of mixing and extruding. The precursor composites were then molded and machined to create test specimens for mechanical and wear tests. These included small punch testing to compare stiffness, maximum load and work-to-failure and block-on-ring testing to determine wear behavior. Each of the tests was conducted for the different weight percentages of composite as well as pure HDPE as the baseline. The measured mechanical properties and wear resistance of the composite materials increased with increasing nanotube content in the range studied.