Abstract
The resistance of fibrous reinforced silver matrix composites to repeated make-break arc erosion has been investigated in this study. Three different types of short fibers were used as reinforcements, including graphite short fibers, Saffil short fibers, and silicon carbide whiskers. The weight losses of eroded composites increase with fiber content, applied current, and test number due to the worse thermal conductivity of the composites and the higher remained temperatures on contact surfaces. The composites reinforced with Saffil short fibers exhibit the best erosion resistance of all reinforcements in the study because of the small spacings between Saffil short fibers and the strengthening of strong short-fiber skeletons. The effective contribution of short fibers to arc erosion resistance depends on their sizes to construct small-spacing and deeply-embedded skeletons. © 2004 Kluwer Academic Publishers.