A study on surface behavior of ductile material in erosion

In order to get a better understanding of the pipeline surface behaviour and its influence on wear mechanisms, erosion tests were performed using a micro-sandblaster under a constant particle flux with a range of impact velocities and angles. Angular silicon carbide (SiC) particles were entrained into a stream of compressed air to impact on a mild steel surface. Particle mass flow rate was selected to allow a sufficient mass loss to occur. The erosion rates were calculated from the mass loss of each target sample and the mass of erodent used. Experimental results confirmed that at shallow impingement angles, erosion was mostly dominated by cutting wear mechanisms, while at the higher angles; erosion is dominated by deformation wear mechanisms. Subsequently, the worn surfaces and their cross-sections have been studied using scanning electron microscope (SEM) to relate between the sub-surface damage characteristics and wear mechanisms.