Wear 258 (2005) 203–207 Comparing the tribological behaviour of an austenitic steel subjected to diverse thermal treatments A. Garc´ ıa ∗ , A. Varela, L. Garc´ ıa, M.C. R´ ıo, S. Naya, M. Su´ arez Department of Industrial Engineering II, Escola Politecnica Superior, University of Coru˜ na, C/Mendiz ´ abal s/n, 15403 Ferrol, Spain Received 22 December 2003 Available online 13 October 2004 Abstract It is known that manganese steels respond well in situations where a high wear resistance is required. The manganese content provides an austenitic structure with both wear resistance and high tenacity values under wear. In its working life, this austenitic structure becomes martensitic as a result of impact and the phenomenon of friction, thus explaining an increase in hardness and its response under wear. Wear resistance of an austenitic steel with a 5% manganese content is determined following the regulation ASTM G105 “Standard test method for conducting wet sand/rubber wheel abrasion test”, consistent with subjecting samples to an abrasive wear test under controlled conditions. These wear tests were carried out on samples that had been previously subjected to various heat treatments. Once the wear tests were completed, the hardness of the tested samples was measured. The results were then compared with those obtained for samples without wear. Moreover, the microstructure and impact test of each sample were examined. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Mn–steel; Abrasive wear; Hardness; Microstructure; Heat treatment 1. Introduction Wear of materials is a great problem in general indus- try, but causes particular concern in the case of coal mills at power plants. The need to replace parts because of the friction-induced damage leads to an increase in operational costs: for the spare itself and the additional expense of stop- ping activity during its replacement. Thus, it is very important to select the appropriate material for those applications that require good behaviour in wear conditions [1,2]. Traditionally, the hardening of carbon or alloyed steel by heat treatment (quenching and tempering) was employed in coal mill linings. The wear behaviour of these materials is due to the hardness achieved with such treatments. Nevertheless, as hardness is increased, toughness is reduced, and this means a higher risk of breaking [3]. ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +34 981 337400x3221; fax: +34 981 337410. E-mail address: agd@cdf.udc.es (A. Garc´ ıa). Therefore, on most occasions, mechanical properties are needed in addition to good wear response. Austenitic man- ganese steel satisfies the requirements of both wear resistance and appropriate toughness. The wear resistance of this ma- terial is a result of the austenitic phase’s transformation into martensite because of the friction and impact on its surface [4–6]. Austenitic manganese steel works well under wear con- ditions because of the relative speed with which the marten- site is created and worn out [7]. One way to improve both tribological and mechanical behaviour may be heat-treating the austenitic manganese steel. In this study, the influence of heat treatment on an austenitic manganese steel’s behaviour is analysed. 2. Materials The material under study was an austenitic manganese steel subjected to different heat treatments. The chemical 0043-1648/$ – see front matter © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.wear.2004.09.003