3.

WEAR

3.1. WEAR BETWEEN SURFACES OF SOLIDS

As already discussed the contact between surfaces of solids at moderate pressures is limited to
contacts between asperities of opposing surfaces. Most forms of wear are the result of events
occurring at asperity contacts. There could be some exceptions to this rule, e.g. erosive wear
which involves hard particles colliding with a surface.
It has been postulated by Archard that the total wear volume is proportional to the real contact
area times the sliding distance. A coefficient ‘K’ which is the proportionality constant
between real contact area, sliding distance and the wear volume has been introduced as:
V = K Ar l = K l s02 N (2.6)
where:
V is the wear volume [m3];
K is the proportionality constant;
Ar is the real area of the contact [m2];
N is the normal load [N];
s02 is the yield stress of the softer surface [Pa];
The ‘K’ coefficient, also known as the ‘Archard coefficient’ is widely used as an index of
wear severity. The coefficient can also be imagined as the proportion of asperity contacts
resulting in wear. The value of ‘K’ is never supposed to exceed unity and in practice ‘K’ has
a value of 0.001 or less for all but the most severe forms of wear. The low value of ‘K’
indicates that wear is caused by only a very small proportion of asperity contacts. In almost
all cases, asperities slide over each other with little difficulty and only a minute proportion of
asperity contacts result in the formation of wear particles.
It has also been suggested that wear particles are the result of a cumulative process of many
interactions between randomly selected opposing asperities. The combination of opposing
asperities during sliding at any one moment can easily be imagined as continuously changing.
A gradual or incremental mode of wear particle formation allows for extensive freedom for
variation or instability in the process. Statistical analysis of wear data reveals that there is a
short term ‘memory’ inherent in wear processes, i.e. any sample of a wear rate is related to the
immediately preceding wear rates, although there seems to be no correlation with much
earlier wear rates. Therefore wear prediction is extremely difficult.
The development of wear (V – volume of material lost by wear from the friction surfaces) is
generally following the diagram from Figure 3.1, where:
• t1 – running in period, with a rapid development of wear (I – wear rate); the
friction surfaces are self-adjusting (roughness is dropping);
• t2 – normal wear; wear has a very slow development.
 After a period of time, due to important dimensional modifications, the working
conditions become bad and wear has a rapid development getting to the failure of the machine
element, in very short time.
The main types of wear are: adhesion wear - seizing (uzarea de adeziune - griparea);
fatigue wear - pitting; abrasive wear (uzarea abrazivă) etc.

V
Running in
Wear rate (I)
Wear (V)

Normal Wear Failure

t1 t2 Running time (t)

Fig. 3.1

3.2 ABRASIVE WEAR

Abrasive wear occurs whenever a solid object is loaded against particles of a material that
have equal or greater hardness.
A major difficulty in the prevention and control of abrasive wear is that the term ‘abrasive
wear’ does not precisely describe the wear mechanisms involved. There are, in fact, almost
always several different mechanisms of wear acting in concert, all of which have different
characteristics.
Mechanisms of Abrasive Wear
It was originally thought that abrasive wear by grits or hard asperities closely resembled
cutting by a series of machine tools or a file. However, microscopic examination has revealed
that the cutting process is only approximated by the sharpest of grits and many other more
indirect mechanisms are involved. The particles or grits may remove material by
microcutting, microfracture, pull-out of individual grains or accelerated fatigue by repeated
deformations as illustrated in Figure 3.2.
 Fig. 3.2

The first mechanism illustrated in Figure 3.2a, cutting, represents the classic model where a
sharp grit or hard asperity cuts the softer surface. The material which is cut is removed as
wear debris.
When the abraded material is brittle, e.g. ceramic, fracture of the worn surface may occur
(Figure 3.2b). In this instance wear debris is the result of crack convergence.
When a ductile material is abraded by a blunt grit then cutting is unlikely and the worn
surface is repeatedly deformed (Figure 3.2c). In this case wear debris is the result of metal
fatigue.
The last mechanism illustrated (Figure 3.2d) represents grain detachment or grain pull-out.
This mechanism applies mainly to ceramics where the boundary between grains is relatively
weak. In this mechanism the entire grain is lost as wear debris.

Cutting
Two basic mechanisms were revealed: a cutting mechanism and a wedge build up mechanism
with flake like debris. This latter mechanism, called ‘ploughing’, was found to be a less
efficient mode of metal removal than ‘micro-cutting’.
The geometry of the grit also affects the mechanism of abrasive wear. It has been observed
that a stylus with a fractured surface containing many ‘micro-cutting edges’ removes far
more material than unfractured pyramidal or spheroidal styluses. Similarly, a grit originating
from freshly fractured material has many more micro-cutting edges than a worn grit which
has only rounded edges.
Beneath the surface of the abraded material, considerable plastic deformation occurs.
This process is illustrated in Figure 3.3.
Fig. 3.3

Fracture
Visual evidence of abrasive wear by brittle fracture was found by studying the subsurface
crack generation caused by a sharp indenter on a brittle transparent solid, as illustrated in
Figure 3.4. Three modes of cracking were found: vent cracks propagating at 30° to the
surface, localized fragmentation, and a deep median crack.

Fig.3.4
Fatigue
The repeated strain caused by grits deforming the area on the surface of a material can also
cause metal fatigue. Detailed evidence for sideways displacement of material and the
subsequent fracture has been found. An example of the sideways material displacement
mechanism is given in Figure 3.5 which shows a transverse section of an abrasion groove.
Wear by repeated sideways displacement of material would also be a relatively mild or slow
form of abrasive wear since repeated deformation is necessary to produce a wear particle.
 Fig. 3.5
Grain Pull-Out
Grain detachment or pull-out is a relatively rare form of wear which is mainly found in
ceramics. This mechanism of wear can become extremely rapid when inter-grain bonding is
weak and grain size is large.

Two-body and three-body modes of abrasive wear

Two-body abrasive wear is exemplified by the action of sand paper on a surface. Hard
asperities or rigidly held grits pass over the surface like a cutting tool.
In three-body abrasive wear the grits are free to roll as well as slide over the surface, since
they are not held rigidly. The two and three-body modes of abrasive wear are illustrated
schematically in Figure 3.6.

Fig. 3.6
3.3 EROSIVE WEAR
Erosive wear is caused by the impact of particles of solid or liquid against the surface of an
object. Erosive wear occurs in a wide variety of machinery and typical examples are the
damage to gas turbine blades when an aircraft flies through dust clouds, and the wear of pump
impellers in mineral suspensions processing systems. In common with other forms of wear,
mechanical strength does not guarantee wear resistance and a detailed study of material
characteristics is required for wear minimization. The properties of the eroding particle are
also significant and are increasingly being recognized as a relevant parameter in the control of
this type of wear.

Mechanisms of Erosive Wear

Erosive wear involves several wear mechanisms which are largely controlled by the particle
material, the angle of impingement, the impact velocity, and the particle size.
If the particle is hard and solid then it is possible that a process similar to abrasive wear will
occur. Where liquid particles are the erodent, abrasion does not take place and the wear
mechanisms involved are the result of repetitive stresses on impact.
The term ‘erosive wear’ refers to an unspecified number of wear mechanisms which occur
when relatively small particles impact against mechanical components. This definition is
empirical by nature and relates more to practical considerations than to any fundamental
understanding of wear.
The angle of impingement is the angle between the eroded surface and the trajectory of the
particle immediately before impact as shown in Figure 3.7. A low angle of impingement
favours wear processes similar to abrasion because the particles tend to track across the worn
surface after impact. A high angle of impingement causes wear mechanisms which are typical
of erosion.

Fig. 3.7
The known mechanisms of erosive wear are illustrated in Figure 3.8. The possible
mechanisms of erosion are: a) abrasion at low impact angles, b) surface fatigue during low
speed, high impingement angle impact, c) brittle fracture or multiple plastic deformation
during medium speed, large impingement angle impact, d) surface melting at high impact
speeds, e) macroscopic erosion with secondary effects, f) crystal lattice degradation from
impact by atoms.
 Fig. 3.8

3.5 CAVITATION WEAR

Cavitation wear is known to damage equipment such as propellers or turbine blades operating
in wet steam, and valve seats. Wear progresses by the formation of a series of holes or pits in
the surface exposed to cavitation. The entire machine component can be destroyed by this
process. Operation of equipment, e.g. propellers, is often limited by severe vibration caused
by cavitation damage.

Mechanism of Cavitation Wear

The characteristic feature of cavitation is the cyclic formation and collapse of bubbles on a
solid surface in contact with a fluid. Bubble formation is caused by the release of dissolved
gas from the liquid where it sustains a near-zero or negative pressure. Negative pressures are
likely to occur when flow of liquid enters a diverging geometry, i.e. emerging from a small
diameter pipe to a large diameter pipe. The down-stream face of a sharp sided object moving
in liquids, e.g. ship propeller, is particularly prone to cavitation. The ideal method of
preventing cavitation is to avoid negative pressures close to surfaces, but in practice this is
usually impossible.
When a bubble collapses on a surface the liquid adjacent to the bubble is at first accelerated
and then sharply decelerated as it collides with the surface. The collision between liquid and
solid generates large stresses which can damage the solid. Transient pressures as high as 1500
MPa are possible. The process of bubble collapsing, together with experimental evidence of a
hole formed in a metal surface by bubble collapse are shown in Figure 3.9.

Fig. 3.9

When cavitation occurs in corrosive media, stress corrosion cracking may accentuate the wear
process. An example of this can be found in the difference in cavitation wear rates between
fresh and salt water.
Cavitation wear can be accelerated by the simultaneous occurrence of erosive wear. If the
cavitation fluid contains erosive particles, then the collapsing bubbles cause the particles to hit
the worn surface at high velocity. The rate of wear is higher than either cavitation or erosion
alone. For example, this phenomenon takes place in hydraulic turbines operating in sandy
water.

3.6 ADHESIVE WEAR

Adhesive wear is a very serious form of wear characterized by high wear rates and a large
unstable friction coefficient. Sliding contacts can rapidly be destroyed by adhesive wear and,
in extreme cases, sliding motion may be prevented by very large coefficients of friction or
seizure. Metals are particularly prone to adhesive wear.

Mechanism of Metal-Metal Adhesion

Apart from noble metals such as gold and platinum any other metal is always covered by an
oxide film when present in unreacted form in an oxidizing atmosphere. The oxide film is
often so thin as to be invisible and the metal appears shiny and pure. This film, which may be
only a few nanometres thick, prevents true contact between metals and hinders severe wear
unless deliberately removed.
Numerous tests on a wide variety of metal combinations have shown that when there is strong
adhesion, transfer of the weaker metal to the stronger occurs as illustrated schematically in
Figure 3.10.

Fig. 3.10

The adhesion or separation force is greater than the contact force. The tendency to adhere
does not discriminate between metals on the basis of their mutual solubility or relative atomic
size. The greatest adhesion occurs for a combination of like materials, i.e. iron to iron, but
many other combinations of unlike metals also show quite high adhesions. The ratio of
adhesion force to contact force can be very high, about 20 or more in some cases. The
bonding process is almost instantaneous and can occur at moderate or low temperatures.
The mechanism of shearing and cracking to form a transfer particle in the adhesive contact
between asperities is illustrated schematically in Figure 3.11.

Fig. 3.11
Material in the softer or sharper asperity deforms in a series of shear bands to accommodate
the relative movement, i.e. there is no sliding along the asperity contact line. When each shear
band reaches a certain limit, a crack is initiated or an existing crack progresses till a new shear
band is formed. The crack extends across the asperity and eventually a particle detaches from
the deformed asperity.
In the contacts between asperities which do not produce wear particles, there may still be
extensive plastic deformation as illustrated in Figure 3.12.

Fig. 3.12

The particle of metal detached from one of the asperities, i.e. as shown in Figure 12.10,
remains attached to the other surface. Depending on conditions it may subsequently be
removed by further asperity contact to form a true wear particle or it will remain on the
surface to form a ‘transfer film’. Examples of metallic film transfer are presented in Figure
3.13: a) brass film transfer on alumina, b) Al-Si alloy transfer film onto a piston ring.

a b
Fig. 3.13
3.7 FATIGUE WEAR
The term ‘contact fatigue’ or ‘surface fatigue’ commonly used in the literature is technical
jargon for surface damage caused by a repeated rolling contact. It refers to the initial damage
on a smooth surface and is most often used in the context of rolling bearings and gears.
Surface Crack Initiated Fatigue Wear
Cracks and fissures have frequently been observed on micrographs of worn surfaces. The
mechanism of surface crack initiated fatigue wear is illustrated schematically in Figure 3.15.
A primary crack originates at the surface at some weak point and propagates downward along
weak planes such as slip planes or dislocation cell boundaries. A secondary crack can develop
from the primary crack or alternatively the primary crack can connect with an existing
subsurface crack. When the developing crack reaches the surface again a wear particle is
released.

Fig. 3.15

During sliding, planes of weakness in the material become orientated parallel to the surface
by the already discussed deformation processes, and laminar wear particles are formed by a
surface crack reaching a plane of weakness as illustrated in Figure 3.16.
 Fig. 3.16

Effect of Lubricant on Contact Fatigue

The lubricant has a critical role in the nature of rolling wear and contact fatigue. Apart from
its capacity to form a lubricating film separating the interacting surfaces, the chemical
components of the lubricant can exert some influence on wear and fatigue in rolling contacts.
EHL films modify the Hertzian pressure and traction distributions. They also influence the
number and severity of asperity interactions and affect the stress concentrations in the vicinity
of surface defects. However, the question is whether EHL films are entirely beneficial in
preventing contact fatigue or if they exhibit some significant limitations.

Hydraulic Pressure Crack Propagation

The crack present on the surface can be enhanced in EHL contacts by the mechanism known
as ‘hydraulic pressure crack propagation’ illustrated schematically in Figure 3.17. It is
suggested that the process occurs in three stages: 1) an initial crack opening phase caused by
traction forces ahead of the rolling contact, 2) the filling of the crack with lubricant, and 3) its
subsequent pressurization when traction forces and contact stresses close the crack. The
hydraulic crack propagation mechanism is thought to be particularly significant in the surface
mode of contact fatigue.
It can be seen from Figure 3.17 that the mechanism of hydraulic crack propagation promotes
rapid crack growth after the initiation stage in lubricated rolling contacts. Once a small crack
is formed, the combined action of stress concentration at the crack tip and extreme lubricant
pressure within the crack force it to extend rapidly. Hydraulic crack propagation might be
suppressed by selecting a lubricant of high viscosity and compressibility. This combination of
properties would introduce a pressure loss due to lubricant flow down the restricted crack
space to the crack tip.

Fig. 3.17