Tribological Characterization of Alumina Ceramic Manufactured by Solvent-Based Slurry Stereolithography

Alumina ceramic is being used extensively in various load-bearing applications. Several additive manufacturing processes have been introduced to produce alumina and other ceramic components featured with complex geometries and enhanced mechanical properties. However, the sliding wear resistance of alumina samples made by additive manufacturing processes has not been investigated in detail. In this paper, solvent-based slurry stereolithography process was employed to produce alumina components, and the tribological properties of the printed specimens were investigated by linear reciprocating sliding wear tests. The results showed that effective lubrication could significantly improve the wear resistance of the printed samples. In dry contact, the printed sample showed limited plastic flow and ductility at room temperature, and wear mechanism was dominated by fatigue induced brittle fracture. At elevated temperatures, the debris formed a protective oxidized layer, preventing excessive wear of the material. The results showed that the alumina samples manufactured by solvent-based slurry stereolithography are good candidates for load-bearing applications at extreme working conditions, such as high contact pressure, high sliding speeds, and high temperatures.