Effects of load on the abrasion of steel by metal-containing diamond-like carbon

Tests were carried out to examine the abrasiveness of diamond-like carbon ( DLC) coated-coupons run against steel balls. Al low loads, the initial abra sion rate increases with load, while at higher loads, the initial abrasion rate is roughly independent of the load. Surprisingly, however, the rate at which the abrasiveness of the W-DLC is lost does not depend on the load. O ur results differ from those predicted by standard equations of abrasion. T he rate at which the abrasiveness of DLC is lost takes a similar value for all of the W- and Ti-DLCs that we have examined, even though the DLCs vary in hardness from 8 to 14 GPa and vary in composition from 6 to 20% metal. ( C) 1999 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.