Tribological gradients of acid-aged coir and coconut husk powder reinforced LDPE plastic under different normal load conditions for potential applications in oil and gas industries

Over the years, polymeric composites have been produced to compete favourably with metals towards addressing the problems of corrosion in the oil and gas industry. For the first time, the tribological behaviour, at different normal load conditions, of coir–coconut husk particulate-reinforced polymer composites subjected to a simulated acidic environment of pH 2.2 for a period of 3, 6 and 9 days was elucidated. Gradients in tribological characteristics (coefficient of friction and wear tracks) were noticed for all samples at the processing conditions. The experiments revealed that with an increase in the load conditions on the tribo-machine, the acid-aged samples immersed for 3 days (3PA) showed distinct gradients in the coefficient of friction. Complementarily, the wear track of sample 3PA showed no clear path that supports the aforementioned mechanism.