This study aims to analyze the relationship between graphite third body and both friction performance and temperature, and provide a reference for optimizing composition design of Cu-based brake pad.
Controlling the main component of surface third body is graphite by adding graphite powder. The coefficient of friction and temperature of friction pair were examined by a TM-I-type reduced-scale inertial braking dynamometer.
Adding graphite powder reduced average coefficient of friction by 0.039–0.08 at 0.25 MPa and 0.016–0.05 at 0.5 MPa under all speed conditions. As pressure increased, the peak temperature of disc surface reduced by 14.7% and 2.5% at 120–260 km/h. The area percentage of high-temperature zone decreased by 3.9%, 5.0% and 3.4% under 0.25 MPa and speeds of 120, 200 and 260 km/h, respectively. Correspondingly, the times to reach high-temperature zones of 90°C–135°C, 270°C–315°C and 405°C–450°C were extended by 6, 53 and 39 s.
The relationship between graphite third body and both friction temperature and brake performance of Cu-based pads is revealed, providing a theoretical reference for the addition of graphite components in Cu-based brake pad.
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-06-2025-0294/
