Common materials for brake shoes include asbestos, metal, ceramic, high carbon (titanium) fiber, etc. Asbestos is low-cost and light-weight, and is often used in trucks and engineering vehicles; metal materials such as iron and copper, iron brake pads have good wear resistance, and copper brake pads can see metal blocks or small particles on the surface; ceramic materials have moderate density, high temperature resistance, corrosion resistance, low noise and no dust; high carbon (titanium) fiber material is an upgraded version of ceramic pads, with the characteristics of light weight, high strength, and good thermal conductivity.
In addition, there are some other materials such as semi-metal, low metal, NAO, etc. Semi-metal materials include metal fibers, graphite and organic materials, with excellent thermal conductivity and wear resistance; low metal materials have good temperature control and heat dissipation capabilities and low noise; NAO materials are mainly glass fiber, rubber and resin, with low noise and little wear on the brake disc.
When choosing the material of the brake shoe, it should be decided according to the vehicle usage and personal braking habits. For example, if you want comfort and low noise, you can choose ceramic or NAO materials; if you need stronger braking performance and wear resistance, semi-metallic materials are a good choice.