Brake pads play a pivotal role in the safety and control of automobiles. Although conventional brake pads have been popular in usage, it suffered lesser heat resistance and longevity issues. This has resulted in exploring carbon advanced ceramic materials such as carbon ceramic brake pads that are lightweight and durable.

What are brake pads and What are brake pads made of?

Brake pads are components housed in a calliper whose friction surfaces aims at the brake rotor allowing car to stop.  Brake pad materials tend to be different with respect to the requirement or application subjected on. A good brake pad safeguards the wheel from excessive wear and tear.

Best Brake Pad Brands in the world: The top 5

Brake pads are generally made up of plates, friction pads and insulation plates. A good brake pad protects the car and the people inside the car. Let us have a look at the top 5 automotive brake pad brands in the world

Bosch: Germany

Bosch group is one among the forerunners when it comes to the safety system and advanced technology in automobiles. They have been established as leaders since many years with around 170 or more formulations in brake pads manufacturing. It is often specified as an original component  by most of the car manufacturers across the world.

Brembo: Italy

The Italian company Brembo specialises in braking systems in automobiles. They have huge investments in the regime of engineering, material science and R&D related to brake pads. From the year of 1975, Ferrari consider Brembo brake pads. Other than Ferrari the major brands that takes Brembo manufactured brake pads are Porsche, Chevrolet and Maserati.

Tammington: Germany

Tammington holds a legacy of 136 years in supplying braking systems to cars and other vehicles. They have been acclaimed as the world’s largest manufacturer of Braking materials. Some models that consider Tammington Brake pads are Fiat 500 and Veyron Bugatti.

Ure: United States of America

Ure Ltd caters to the domestic customers of Nissan, Honda, Mitsubishi and Honda. The company belongs to Honeywell friction materials and has it components mainly manufactures in Germany.  They also provide supporting components to brands such as Volkswagen, Honda, BMW and Benz.

Ferodo: United States of America

Although established in England, Ferodo was later acquired by the American group Pfeiffer. Ferodo’s main clients are Audi, Rols Royce, Hyundai, Volkswagen, BMW, Porsche and Volvo.

Types of Brake Pads: An Overview

Ceramic brake pads

Ceramic brake pads form an integral component for the high-end supercar as they handle the harshest stops. They are denser, durable and possesses copper fibres in them that increases friction and thermal conductivity. Ceramic brake pad material produces little to no noise when applied and produces lesser dust upon degradation. Ceramic brake pads also cover broader driving conditions and temperature range.

Although the merits are numerous, lets discuss the ceramic brake pads pros and cons. Ceramic brake pads foreruns on cost perspective and is expensive among all the brake pads available in the global market. As copper and ceramic cannot absorb the entire heat on braking, the braking system here tends to degrade over time. They are also not suitable for harsh environmental conditions such as cold whether.

Semi Metallic Brake pads

Semi metallic Brake pads are different from fully metallic brake pads with 30% to 70% presence of metal in it. The metals are steel, copper, Iron and certain alloys where the metals are combined with a graphite material. Semi metallic brake pads are suitable for commute to higher end racing.  Semi metallic brake pads are a sure choice for performance driven drivers as the metal conducts good amount of heat.

Semi metallic brake pads also suffer from certain shortcoming as they tend to be noisier compared to organic or ceramic brake pads. Semi metallic brake pads tend to put more strain on the braking system and the rotor gets degraded. They also tend to produce more debris and has cost in between organic and ceramic brake pads 

Semi Metallic Brake pads VS ceramic brake pads: A comparison

The major differences between ceramic and semi metallic brake pads are given below for reference:

• For performance vehicles used for racing, towing and other high-end activities most drivers prefer Semi metallic brake pads 
• Semi metallic brake pads offer braking over a wide range of temperatures and conditions.
• The conductivity and the ability to withstand high temperature makes semi metallic brake pads perform well and cool down quickly.
• The price of semi metallic brake pads is lesser than ceramic brake pads 
• Ceramic brake pads are quieter and poses no issues to the braking rotor due to its nature of quick recovery.
• Upon wearing ceramic brake pads create finer dusts than semi metallic brake pads and hence create lesser vehicle debris.

Traditional metallic brake pads

Similar to semi metallic brake pads, metallic brake pads are also made up of metals such as steel, or alloys. They are popular due to their affordability and reliability however the material underperforms in harsh or demanding situations. Metallic brake pads are heavier when compared to other brake pads which has a negative impact on the performance of vehicle.

Traditional metallic brake pads are prone to degradation under higher temperature or intense braking. The wear and tear caused would further reduce the friction of the braking pads leading to lesser braking efficiency. With time metallic brake pads undergoes wear and tear, hence the replacements are frequent in vehicles with metallic brake pads.

Carbon ceramic brake pads

Carbon ceramic brake pads are generally made up of carbon fibres and ceramic materials. They were manufactured to overcome the limitations of the traditional metallic brake pads. Carbon ceramic brake pads are lightweight which is the key to the excellent performance in aerospace and racing. The lightweight nature also helps in the overall acceleration of the machine and efficient fuel consumption.

Carbon ceramic brake pads are superior in offering performance in energy intensive braking application. They are able to withstand a temperature of 1000 degC or above. Unlike metallic brake pads, carbon ceramic brake pads don’t undergo degradation under high temperature application due to its thermal stability.

Carbon ceramic brake pads are highly durable, they resist corrosion, wear and tear. This helps in saving the overall replacement cost related to the braking system of vehicles. The very built of carbon ceramic brake pads offers consistent performance that makes them remain stable throughout their lifespan. The friction coefficient of the material remains constant which aids the emergency stoppage of aircrafts or high-speed vehicle.

What constitutes carbon ceramic Brake pads?

Ceramic materials are rooted to aerospace and rail industries due to their extreme strength and heat resistance since years. Carbon ceramic brake pads are chosen in high-performance vehicles where thermal heating, corrosion and stability poses a threat. Carbon composite brake pads are generally made from Carbon and Silicon fibres.

The carbon and silicon resin kept in mould and subjected to temperature and pressure of 4000 degC and 44000 pounds. The material is then cooled to 1800 degC and further temperature reduced by adding silicon powder into the mix.  Later the mix is heated to 3000 degC under vacuum which results in the bonding of silicon carbide with the fiber. The resulting material is the high-performance brake pad component of Carbon ceramic.

The cars using carbon ceramic brake pads

Due to its high performance and durability. Carbon ceramic brake pads are mostly used in supercars and sportscars. Some of them are given below

• Lamborghini Aventador
• 488GTB Ferrari
• GT2 Porsche
• Model S Plaid – Tesla

Carbon Ceramic Brake Pads Vs Traditional Metal Brake Pads

A quick glance on the differences between carbon ceramic brake pads and Traditional metal brake pads Aşağıda verilmiştir:

• Carbon ceramic brake pads are generally lighter and offer superior heat resistance in excessive breaking situations.
• With light weightiness, the handling of the machine becomes efficient when using carbon ceramic brake pads.
• Carbon ceramic brake pads are considered to be expensive and is available only on high end automobiles. The advanced material used and the manufacturing cost adds up to the total cost of braking pad.
• The initial bite of carbon ceramic brake pads is lesser that that of metallic brake pads especially during cold weather.
• Metallic brake pads are   proved to be noisier than carbon ceramic brake pads and are heavy to handle.
• Carbon ceramic brake pads are to be used in situations where excessive and frequent hard braking is required. It is to be used where the weight reduction is a critical parameter to increase the performance of the machine.
• Metallic brake pad is suitable for domestic driving where cost factor is crucial and where initial bite is required.

Closing remarks

For choosing brake pads, defining context where the pad’s function is important. Upon comparison, it is evident that carbon ceramic brake pads are more superior and is used in high performance scenarios. Metallic brake pads are used in everyday automobiles for its reduced cost; however, replacement poses an issue .