CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION TO
TRIBOLOGY

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 Contents

1.1 Definition of Tribology

1.2 History of Tribology

1.3 Importance of Tribology

1.4 Research in Tribology

1.5 Tribological Components and their

Applications/ New Areas of Tribology 2
Learning objectives
Upon completing this chapter, you should be able to:

1. Define tribology.

2. Understand the history and importance of

tribology.

3. Identify the tribological components /machine

elements/ and their applications in machine design
and operation.
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1.1 Definition of tribology
• “Tribology” is derived from the Greek word ‘tribos’
meaning rubbing or sliding.
• It is the study of rubbing or sliding.
• Tribology focuses on friction, wear and lubrication
of interacting surfaces in relative motion (1967)
• Tribology is an applied art and as such should be
based upon, or requires background knowledge in, in
many topics.
In mechanical engineering (the seat of most design
instruction):
• Fluid mechanics,
• Elasticity,
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• Material science,
• Dynamics,
• Heat transfer, Methods of mechanical design and the
like.
But the complete tribologist will have added some
knowledge
• Plasticity
• Contact mechanics
• Surface Chemistry, (oxidation, adhesion, adsorption),
• Lubricant Chemistry and the like.
Tribology is also defined as the science and technology
of interacting surfaces in relative motion and of related
subjects and practices. 5
1.2 Historyof tribology
a) During the Paleolithic period:
• Drills were fitted with bearings made from antlers or
bones
• Potter’s wheels of stones for grinding cereals, etc.,
clearly had a requirement for some form of bearings.
• A ball thrust bearing about AD40 was found in Lake
Nimi near Rome.
b) Records show the use of wheels from 3500BC
(illustrates concern with reducing friction in
translationary motion)
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 c)The transportation of large stone building blocks
and monuments required the know-how of frictional
devices and lubricants, such as water-lubricated
sleds. fig-chp1\chp1-fig1.pptx
d) Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), deduced the
rules governing the motion of a rectangular block
sliding over a flat surface. fig-chp1\chp1-fig2.pptx
• the areas in contact have no effect on friction.
• if the load of an object is doubled, its friction will also be doubled.
e) In 1699, the French physicist Guillaume
Amontons rediscovered the rules of friction after he
studied dry sliding between two flat surfaces.
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f) During 1500, many developments occurred in the
use of improved bearing materials.
 Essential laws of viscous flow were postulated by Sir Isaac
Newton in 1668
g) The principle of hydrodynamic lubrication was
made by the experimental studies and the theoretical
interpretations of Reynolds.
 Hydrodynamic bearing theory and practice were extremely
rapid in meeting the demand for reliable bearings in new
machinery.

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 h) Wear
 much more younger subject than friction and bearing
development, and it was initiated on a largely empirical
basis.
 Scientific studies of wear developed little until the mid-
twentieth century.
i) Since the beginning of the 20th century,
knowledge in all areas of tribology has expanded.
 enormous industrial growth leading to demand for better
tribology,

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 1.3 Importance of tribology
Tribology is crucial to modern machinery which
uses sliding and rolling surfaces. Examples of
productive friction are:
• brakes, clutch,
• driving wheels on trains and automobiles,
• bolts and nuts and the like
Tribology is not only important in industry, it also
affects day-to-day life. Examples:
• writing is a tribological process,
• shaving cream is used as a lubricant to minimize friction
between a razor and the skin,
• friction is helpful during walking and driving,
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• The consequence of (unproductive) friction and
wear:
1) Friction and wear usually cost money
 In the form of energy loss and material loss as well
as the social system using the mechanical device.
2) Friction and wear can decrease national
productivity
 Less desirable products (wear faster and require
maintenance)
 Worn machine tool (require skilled machinist and
affect products)
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3) Friction and wear can affect national security
 Decreased efficiency of military hardware (wear of
aircraft engines and barrels of large guns) decreases
the ability to perform a military mission.
4) Friction and wear can affect quality of life
 Tooth fillings, artificial teeth, artificial skeletal joints
improve the quality of life.
 Worn cars and worn tires require lower driving speeds
on wet roads.
5) Wear causes accidents
 Traffic accidents are sometimes caused by worn
brakes or other worn parts.
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1.4 Research in tribology
The purpose of research in tribology is:
 the minimization and elimination of losses (resulting
from friction and wear at all levels of technology where
the rubbing of surfaces is involved).
 leads to greater plant efficiency, better performance,
fewer breakdowns, and significant savings.
Available literature in tribology:
1. Journals and Periodicals
 Wear,
Journal of Tribology (formerly the Journal of Lubrication
Technology),
Tribology Transactions of the Society of Tribologists and
Lubrication Engineers(STLE) 13
2. Books :
 About 5 new books appear each year in the field,
some books contain the following words in the title
tribology, contact mechanics, lubricant chemistry etc
3. Conferences on friction, lubrication and wear
 USA,
 Europe,
 Japan and the like

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1.5 Tribological Components and Applications
• Tribological components that operate at low to
moderate contact stresses (on the order of 5 MPa)
include sliding-contact bearings, seals, piston rings
and electrical brushes.
• The components that operate at high Hertzian
stresses (on the order of 500 MPa) include rolling-
contact bearings, gears, cams, and tappets
1.5.1. Bearings
• The machine elements that support a moving shaft
against a stationary housing are called bearings. In
general, we can classify bearings as either sliding-
contact or rolling-contact bearings. fig-chp1\chp1-
fig3.pptx 15
a) sliding-contact bearings
– also known as sliding or plain bearings or bushings
– the load is transmitted between moving parts by sliding contact
– sliding bearings can be lubricated with a film of air, water, oil,
grease, or the process fluid.
– Thrust and journal bearings are perhaps the most familiar and most
widely used of all bearings fig-chp1\chp1-fig4.pptx
– Sliding bearings most commonly fail by adhesive, abrasive, and/or
chemical (or corrosive) wear mechanisms.
– In general, the standard requirements for selection of material are
compressive strength, fatigue strength, thermal conductivity, wear
resistance, corrosive resistance, and cost
– Bearing materials fall into two major categories: metals and
nonmetals.
• Several types of soft metals – precious metals, tin- and lead-based alloys
(babbitts), copper based alloys (brasses and bronzes), aluminum-based
alloys, cast iron, and porous metals.
• The nonmetals include wood, carbon-graphites, plastics, elastomers,
ceramics, cermets, and several other proprietary materials.
– The thickness of the liner material usually ranges from 0.25 mm to
as high as 10 mm. 16
b) Rolling-contact or rolling-element or antifriction bearings
– They employ a number of balls or rollers between two surfaces
known as inner and outer races or rings. fig-chp1\chp1-fig5.pptx
– Rolling bearings have much less friction than sliding bearings and,
therefore, are also called antifriction bearings.
– The load capacity and stiffness of rolling bearings is much larger
than that of sliding-contact bearings.
– Because of the use of balls or rollers, the actual area of contact is
reduced to near zero; therefore, contact stresses are very high
(Hertzian stresses), typically on the order of 500 MPa or more.
– Rolling bearings are generally lubricated with a liquid lubricant or
grease via elastohydrodynamic lubrication.
– The classic rolling-bearing failure mode is fatigue spalling, The
bearing industry has used SAE 52100 steel as a standard material
since the 1920s.
– This is a high-carbon chromium steel that also contains small
amounts of Mn, Si, Ni, Cu, and Mo.
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 1.5.2. Seals
– The primary function of seals, called fluid seals, is to
limit loss of lubricant or process fluid (liquid or gas)
from systems and to prevent contamination of systems by
the operating environment.
– Lubrication of the sealing interface varies from
hydrodynamic to no lubrication
– Adhesive wear is the dominant type of wear in well-
designed seals. Other wear modes are abrasive wear,
corrosive wear, fatigue wear, etc
– Seals materials range from very hard combinations such
as ceramics (e.g., alumina, tungsten carbide, silicon
carbide, boron carbide) and cermets (e.g., cemented
carbides) to babbitts, bronzes, carbon-graphites,
thermoplastic resins, and elastomers.
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 1.5.3. Gears
– Gears are toothed wheels used for transmission of rotary
motion from one shaft to another and a change in rotational
speed.
– There are different types of gear including spur, helical, bevel
and worm gears. fig-chp1\chp1-fig6.pptx
– Contact occurs on lines or points, resulting in high Hertzian
contact stresses, similar to that in rolling-contact bearings.
The gear motion is associated primarily with rolling and some
sliding motions.
– Gear teeth may operate under boundary, mixed, and fluid-film
(elastohydrodynamic) lubrication regimes.
– Typical failure modes of gears are surface fatigue, scoring,
pitting, abrasion, corrosive wear, and tooth breakage
– Gear wear is reduced by heat treatments or thermochemical
treatments or by the application of coatings. The most
commonly used gear material for power transmission is steel.
Cast iron, bronze, and some nonmetallic materials are also
used. 19
 1.5.4. Cams and Tappets
– Cams and tappets (or cam follower systems) are extensively
employed in engineering machines to transform rotary motion
to reciprocating sliding motion or vice versa, e.g., in
automotive valve trains. fig-chp1\chp1-fig7.pptx
– The contact conditions are nominal points or line contacts
which under load lead to elliptical and rectangular contact
areas, respectively.
– The wear modes for cams and tappets are very similar to
those for gears.
– The wear of cams and tappets can be reduced considerably by
selecting hard material combinations or by hardening the cam
material by heat treatments or thermochemical treatments or
by applying coatings.
– Tappet materials are usually through-hardened high C, Cr, or
Mo types of carburized low-alloy steels. The most common
tappet material in automotive applications is gray hardenable
cast iron containing Cr, Mo, and Ni or chilled cast iron.
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 1.5.5. Piston Rings
– Piston rings are mechanical sealing devices used for sealing
pistons, piston plungers, reciprocating rods, etc., inside
cylinders.
– In gasoline and diesel engines and lubricated reciprocating
type compressor pumps, the rings are generally split-type
compression metal rings. fig-chp1\chp1-fig8.pptx
– An ideal piston-ring material must meet the following
requirements:-
• low friction and wear losses
• superior scuffing resistance
• long-term reliability and long maintenance-free life,
• low production cost.
– Pearlitic gray iron produced by either centrifugal or sand-cast
methods is most widely used.
– In the heavier-duty engine applications:- chromium-
molybdenum alloy iron, spheroidal graphite iron, and carbidic
malleable iron.
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 1.5.6 Railway Tribology
• At the point or points where the wheel touches the rail a
contact patch develops where the tribological effect is
observed
• Many parameters influence the dynamic interaction between
wheel and rail:
– the mechanical properties of the track and the vehicle
– the conditions in the wheel-rail interface
– track alignment
– Curves
– axle load
– train speed.

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 New Areas of Tribology
1) Nano-Tribology (MEMS/NEMS)
– Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) refer to
microscopic devices that have a characteristic length of less
than 1 mm but more than 100 nm and combine electrical and
mechanical components.
– Nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) refer to nanoscopic
devices that have a characteristic length of less than 100 nm
and combine electrical and mechanical components.
– These are referred to as an intelligent miniaturized system
comprising of sensing, processing, and/or actuating functions
and combine electrical and mechanical components.
– MEMS/NEMS terms are also now used in a broad sense and
include electrical, mechanical, fluidic, optical, and/or
biological functions.(e.g. Magnetic storage devices) 23
2) Green Tribology
– Green tribology can be viewed in the broader context of two
“green” areas: green engineering and green chemistry
– The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):-
• Green engineering as “the design, commercialization and use of
processes and products that are technically and economically feasible
while minimizing (i) generation of pollution at the source (ii) risk to
human health and the environment”
• Green chemistry, also known as sustainable chemistry, is defined as
“the design of chemical products and processes that reduce or
eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances”
– Areas of Green Tribology:-
a) Biodegradable Lubricants and Materials:-the use biodegradable and
environmentally-friendly lubricants and materials
b) Renewable Energy:- tribology of renewable and/or sustainable
sources of energy (relatively a new field). fig-chp1\chp1-fig9.pptx
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3) BioTribology
– The application of tribology in biological systems is a
rapidly growing field and extends well beyond the
conventional boundaries.
– Biomedical tribological systems involve an extensive
range of synthetic materials and natural tissues, including
cartilage, blood vessels, heart, tendons, ligaments, and
skin. fig-chp1\chp1-fig10.pptx
– Biotribologists incorporate concepts of friction, wear, and
lubrication of these biological surfaces in various
applications:-
• the design of joints and prosthetic devices
• the wear of screws and plates in bone fracture repair
• wear of denture and restorative materials, wear of replacement
heart valves
• tribology of contact lenses. 25
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Fig. 1-1 Use of a sledge to transport a heavy statue
by Egyptians circa 1880BC 27
Fig. 1-2 Laws of friction by Leonardo Da Vinci
(1452-1519) 28
a) Sliding bearings b) Anti-friction bearings

Fig. 1-3 Types of bearings 29

Fig. 1-4 Schematic of rotating shaft supported by a thrust
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and journal bearing
a) Radial ball bearing b) Cylindrical roller bearing c) Tapered roller bearing

Fig. 1-5 Types of bearings 31

 a) Spur gears b) Helical gears

c) Bevel gears d) Worm gears

Fig. 1-6 Types of gears 32
Fig. 1-7 Cams and tappets in vale gear mechanism
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Fig. 1-8 Piston rings 34
Fig. 1-9 Photograph of a wind turbine
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Fig. 1-10 Body joint and articular cartilage
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