www.tjprc.org editor@tjprc.org ABRASIVE WEAR BEHAVIOR OF GRAPHITE REINFORCED PMMA MATRIX COMPOSITES NARASINGH DEEP 1 , PUNYAPRIYA MISHRA 2 & SWADHIN KUMAR PATEL 3 1,2 Department of Mechanical Engineering, VSSUT, Burla, India 3 Department of Production Engineering, VSSUT, Burla, India ABSTRACT Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) is a transparent thermoplastic widely used as a viable alternative to glass for its lightweight and its shatter-resistance ability. In this paper PMMA is taken as the matrix material with graphite filler at varying percentages (0.1, 0.3 and 0.5) in order to prepare a PMMA/Graphite composite. The mixing of reinforcement graphite and PMMA matrix is carried out using micro compounder. The erosion wear properties were studied at different parameters and the results obtained were discussed. KEYWORDS: Poly Methyl Meth Acrylate (PMMA) & Graphite INTRODUCTION Composites materials made from two or more ingredients which remain separate forming a single component with different chemical and physical properties as compared to their individual properties. Generally, the composites are made up of two phases: matrix and reinforcement (filler). The reinforcement maintains their relative positions whereas the matrix supports and surrounds the reinforcement materials. As the composite materials are light weight and possess high strength hence they are drastically replacing the traditional materials. The role of matrix materials is very important and cannot be neglected, as it binds fibers together, transfers load and stresses within the composite structure, protects the fibers from mechanical damage while handling. Polymer matrix composites are composed of a polymer matrix combined with a fibrous reinforcing dispersed phase. These composite materials provide high tensile strength, high fracture strength, high stiffness, better abrasion resistance, low cost, good corrosion resistance. Mechanical, thermal and electrical properties of graphite-PMMA composites have been evaluated as the function of particle size and dispersion of graphite nano-filler components via the use of three different graphitic nano fillers [1] Like as received graphite (ARG), Graphite nano platelets (GNPs) and expanded graphite (EG). EG, a graphitic material with much lower density than ARG was prepared from ARG flakes via an acid intercalation and thermal expansion. Subsequent sonication of EG with a liquid yielded GNPs as thin stacks of graphitic platelets with thickness of 10nm is done. Solution based processing was used to prepare PMMA composites with these three fillers & properties of GNP/PMMA nano composites are superior to those of ARG/PMMA and EG/PMMA nano composites. The room temperature modulus was observed to increase with increase of filler content. By dispersing a small amount of graphene in polymers, many properties of the resulting composites such as tensile strength, elastic modulus electrical and thermal conductivity, and thermal stability can be significantly improved [2]. Original Article International Journal of Mechanical and Production Engineering Research and Development (IJMPERD) ISSN (P): 2249-6890; ISSN (E): 2249-8001 Special Issue, Nov 2016, 329-334 © TJPRC Pvt. Ltd.