Abstract: Self-lubricating composites are very effective for increasing the service life of friction pairs in some machines. This paper deals with the self-lubricating properties of hot-pressed Ni-MoS2 composites in air at room temperature and elevated temperatures, when they are frictionally coupled with reciprocating sliding ball of GCrl5 bearing steel. The effects of load, temperature and MOS2 content on friction coefficient and wear rate have been investigated respectively. The morphologies of wear tracks have been examined under scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results show that the friction coefficient increases continuously with the increasing of load, and can be kept at lower level until the temperature is elevated to 400℃: the composite containing 60％ MoS2 possesses the lowest wear rate at both room temperature and 250℃. The increase of MoS2 content is beneficial to improving the high temperature self-lubricating property of the composites. It is suggested that the homogenity and integrity of MoS2 transfer film formed on the frictional surfaces can be as the evaluation criterion of the self-lubricating property of Ni-MoS2 composites.

Key words: Composite, Molybdenum disulfide, Self-lubrication, Solid lubricant Friction, Wear