This research set out to create new zirconia-silica-titanium oxide (ZrO₂-SiO₂ -TiO) composites and test their tribological performance over a range of humidity conditions (10 – 90% relative humidity (RH)). To begin, ZrO₂-SiO₂ composites with different SiO₂ concentrations (6 – 24 wt.%) were made by cold press sintering. The results showed that the quantity of ZrO₂-SiO₂ in situ phase during sintering raise as the SiO₂ concentration in the composites increased. The composite’s hardness and wear resistance were both improved by the ZrO₂-SiO₂ phase, while friction was decreased at higher humidity levels by the humidity-sensitive ZrO₂ phase. The following step was to create ZrO₂-SiO₂ -TiO composites by adding TiO (6 wt.%) to the ZrO₂ -SiO₂ mixture. The hardness and percentage relative density were both increased by 1.3 to 2.0 times, respectively, in these composites. Consequently, there was a marked improvement in the tribological performance. The crystal-chemical method and polarization theory were used to construct these new ZrO₂ -SiO₂ -TiO composites, and the underlying mechanism for increased wear resistance was described.

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