Tribological Performance of Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) in Aqueous Environments and Dry Sliding

Herein, the tribological behavior of virgin polytetrafluoroethylene against stainless steel is investigated in natural sea water, distilled water and dry running conditions by means of pin on disc reciprocating tribo-tester. The tribo-tests were carried out under ambient conditions at10N normal load. PTFE displayed better tribo-performance in natural sea water relative to distilled water environment and dry sliding. A reduction in specific wear rate of one order magnitude is observed under sea water environment compared to other testing conditions. The minimum COF (0.0310) is noticed in sea water environment.