Characterization of Friction Material Formulations for Brake Pads

— New friction material formulations are compared with a commercial brake friction material used in Light Rail Transit (LRT) operating in Malaysia. Characterization techniques such as SEM, TGA, XRD, friction and wear tests are used to characterize the formulations as well as the commercial material. Out of the 30 formulations made, two formulations viz., S1 and S2 closer to commercial material are presented in this work. Formulation S2 exhibits better thermal stability and better wear resistance. With the help of SEM analysis, physical properties and XRD spectrum analysis, it is shown that formulation S2 has same crystallinity as the commercial specimen and can be considered for replacing the commercial material in LRT brake pad applications. The cost of the brake pad would reduce by half if they are made locally in Malaysia.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2007
• Where: WCE
• Authors: Darius G. Solomon, Mohamad N. Berhan
• Keywords: Commercial Material, Formulations, Friction Material Formulations, WCE 2007, WCE 2008