Introduction to Tribology

Shailesh Mani Pandey

What is Tribology ?
• Tribology comes from the Greek word, “tribos”, meaning “rubbing” or
“to rub”
• And from the suffix, “ology” means “the study of”
• Therefore, Tribology is the study of rubbing, or… “the study of things
that rub”.
• This includes the fields of:
• Friction,
• Lubrication, and
• Wear.
“Tribology” is a new word…
• “The Jost Report”, provided to the British Parliament – Ministry for
Education and Science, indicated… “Potential savings of over £515
million per year ($800 million) for industry by better application of
tribological principles and practices.”
The First Recorded Tribologist – 2400 B.C.
Transporting the statue of Ti – from a tomb at Saqqara, Egypt

Figure taken from “History of Tribology”, by Duncan Dowson

The First Recorded Tribologist – 2400 B.C.
Transporting the statue of Ti – from a tomb at Saqqara, Egypt
The First Recorded Tribologist – 2400 B.C.

The first recorded tribologist – pouring lubricant (water?) in front of the sledge in the transport of the
statue of Ti.
A more famous Tribologist – 500 years ago
A more famous Tribologist – 500 years ago
A more famous Tribologist – 500 years ago
 Tribology - Basics

Applications and Fields which

Encompass Modern Tribology
Tribology is All Around Us, In Applications from
Simple to Complex and Scales from Small to Large
•Individual Components
•Assemblies or Products
•Manufacturing Processes
•Construction/Exploration
•Natural Phenomena
Individual Components
Assemblies or Products
Manufacturing Processes
Construction/Exploration
Natural Phenomena
In Parallel to these different Scales, There
are Many Areas of Engineering and
Industry which have a Need to
Use/Understand Tribology
Tribology is also in Virtually every Area of
Engineering and Industry
 Commonality in Tribology
• What do All These Diverse Fields and Applications have in
Common?

• What do we need to think about as engineers and scientists

when we design products or friction/wear experiments?
 Commonality…
• Every Application has:
• Surfaces in Contact, and
in Relative Motion

(e.g. sliding, rolling, impacting)

 Tribology Basics - Surfaces in Contact

So let’s begin by looking closely at

a surface…
The Surface is not Simple…
The Surface is not Simple…
 Nor is it Flat!

• All engineering surfaces have a roughness, and this roughness plays an important
role in tribology.
 Nor is it Flat!

All engineering surfaces have a roughness, and this roughness plays an

important role in tribology.
Surface Roughness comes from all prior history of the part:
Manufacturing, handling and prior use in application.
 We need to think about…
• 2 Aspects of a Surface:
Physical - Surface Roughness
• Dictates Contact Area
• Dictates Contact Stresses
• Lubricant Paths or Reservoirs
 We need to think about…
• Chemical - Intervening Layers
• Chemical Compatibility
• Shear Strength
• Lubricant Properties, e.g. Viscosity
 We need to think about…
• 2 Aspects of a Surface:
Physical - Surface Roughness
• Dictates Contact Area
• Dictates Contact Stresses
• Lubricant Paths or Reservoirs
 We need to think about…
• Chemical - Intervening Layers
• Chemical Compatibility
• Shear Strength
• Lubricant Properties, e.g. Viscosity
Surface Characterization
Variety of method available if needed
• Physical Characterization
• Roughness
• Macro – Waviness and Form (CMM)
• Micro – Surface Roughness
– Stylus Profilometers (contact)
– Optical Profilometers (non-contact)
– AFM (sub-micron)
• Hardness
• Indent, Scratch
Chemical Characterization
• Infrared, XPS, Raman, Auger
• Lubricant Shear properties → Viscometry
 Summary of Surfaces in Contact
• Tribo-Forces are Dictated by Interaction of
Asperities
• Asperities have Mechanical and Chemical Properties
• Methods Exist to Characterize these Properties

• Asperity Geometry and Distribution result from

Manufacturing Method, Handling and Prior Rubbing History
 Friction
Fundamentals
 Friction Fundamentals
Conceptual Definition of Friction
• Friction is the resistance to relative motion
between two bodies in contact
Where does the resistance come from?
When objects touch – there are forces between them.
 Where does friction come from?
• Remember, there are also “contaminants” at the interface
 Friction Fundamentals – “The COF”

• The Coefficient of Friction: A simple constant of

proportionality.
 Friction Fundamentals – “The COF”
• The Coefficient of Friction: A simple constant of
proportionality.

Or

• is it?
Friction Fundamentals – “The COF”
 Friction Fundamentals
Measuring Friction: The Coefficient of Friction
Very Simple Relation:

F=µN

µ = F/N = “COF”
Friction Fundamentals
• Suppose a colleague wants to know
Friction Fundamentals
Well, dear colleague, you can use from 0.1 to 0.6. Take your pick.

Is that close enough for your needs?

Friction Fundamentals

“Then I guess we’ll need a bit more information.”

Friction Fundamentals
What we need to know…
• “What steel?
• Stainless steel: 304, 316 , a 400-series or hardened 17-4PH or the like?
• Carbon steel: if so is it pearlitic or martensitic?
• Tool Steel?

• “Well I need to use it in water, so stainless steel, I guess.”

• “What is the function? “What is the mechanism?”
• “I’m designing a gear-driven mechanism, and I need to size the motor, assuming some frictional loss in the gears, so I need the COF.”
• “Gears… Then, it needs to be hardened. How about the driven gear, what’s its material?” • “The same, I suppose.”
• “I’m not sure that’s a good idea, depending on the contact stress, sliding velocity and surface finish. Do you know these parameters yet?”
• “Not yet, I’ll probably use standard values from my gear design handbook.”
• “OK, I gather you need low friction, how about lubricant or use of a lubricious coating, are these permitted in the design?”
• ”A coating is OK, but I don’t think a liquid lubricant is permitted in this application.”
• “OK, a coating then. How long will it need to last?”
• “For the life of the mechanism. Can’t you just tell me the COF?”
• Really, I need more information, because I’ll likely need to run a test, depending on how precisely you need the COF.”…
All things considered, The COF is Somewhat
Complicated
• Surface roughness plays a role
• Lubricant plays a role
• Surface chemistry plays a role
• Contact Stress plays a role
• Contact geometry plays a role
• Environment plays a role
• Temperature plays a role
• Sliding speed plays a role
 All things considered It’s not so bad after all

Fortunately, while it appears complicated, friction is relatively

easy to measure, (Only two things: Normal Load and Friction

Force) But, we have to measure it under the right conditions.

Summary of Friction Fundamentals The equation
is simple, but measuring it correctly requires care
• When assessing a system’s tribology need, we must consider:
• Materials, Coating, Lubricant Contact Area,
• Geometry, Stress
• Surface Roughnesses
• Sliding Speed
• Sliding Mode (unidirectional, reciprocating, multidirectional)
• Duty Cycle (continuous contact, intermittent contact)
• Environment Temperature, Humidity,
• Atmosphere (air, exhaust gases, vacuum)
• Friction is NOT a Material Property
• Friction is a “System” Property
• No such thing as the COF of “steel”, or the COF of “rubber”
Lubrication Fundamentals
 Lubrication Fundamentals
• The role of a lubricant is to:
• Reduce Friction
• Prevent / Minimize Wear
• Transport Debris away from Interface
• Provide Cooling
Lubrication Fundamentals: Lubrication
Regimes, with liquid present
• In Liquid Lubrication, Regimes can be based on: Fluid Film Thickness
• The Lambda Ratio is defined as the ratio of the fluid film thickness to
the composite surface roughness*
• λ > 3 → full film (thick film) lubrication, hydrodynamics
• 1.2 > λ > 3 → mixed or thin film lubrication
• λ < 1.2 → boundary lubrication

* - composite surface roughness = (rq12 + rq22)1/2

Lubrication Regimes: The Stribeck Curve
Lubrication Regimes: Boundary Lubrication
– Solid Lubricants
• Solid Lubricants
• Compounds with Low Shear Stress
• MoS2, Graphite, WS2, HBN
• Behave like a “deck of cards”

• Bonded Films
• DLC
• Resin-bonded PTFE
• Impregnated porous anodizing
 Summary of Lubrication Fundamentals:
• Key Factors in Lubricant Effectiveness
Fluid Shear Properties
• Viscosity, Viscosity Index
• Pressure-Viscosity Index
Chemistry
• Reactivity with the Surface
• Boundary Film-Forming Properties
• Extreme Pressure Constituents
• Shear strength of solid lubricant or coating
Summary of Lubrication Fundamentals:
• Thermal Conductivity/Heat Capacity
Wear Fundamentals
 Wear Fundamentals
Conceptual Definition of Wear
• Removal (or displacement) of material from one body
when subjected to contact and relative motion with
another body.
 Wear Fundamentals - Wear Modes
6 Primary Wear Modes:
• Abrasive Wear, Scratching
• Adhesive Wear, Galling, Scuffing
• Fretting/Fretting Corrosion
• Erosive Wear, Cavitation, Impact, Electro-arcing
• Rolling Contact Fatigue, Spalling, Delamination
• Tribo-Corrosion
 Wear Fundamentals
• Abrasive Wear, Scratching

“The harder material scratches the

softer material.”
 Wear Fundamentals
• Adhesive Wear, Galling, Scuffing

Begins as “local welding”

Material “compatibility” is important for

adhesive wear.

Stacking fault energy, crystal structure,

natural oxide formation all influence
adhesive wear.
 Wear Fundamentals
• Fretting/Fretting Corrosion
• Experiments generally have zones of no-slip, and slip.
• Small adhesive pull-outs occur at the boundary.
• Often these oxidize, so sometimes called “fretting corrosion

Small amplitude displacement (< 50 µm).

Wear Fundamentals
• Erosive Wear, Cavitation, Impact, Electro-arcing
 Wear Fundamentals
• Rolling Contact Fatigue, Spalling, Delamination

• Reversing sub-surface shear each time the

roller or ball passes over the surface.
• Accumulation of these stresses leads to
subsurface crack formation, usually at a
microstructural inhomogeneity.
• Cracks grow toward surface and particle
spalls off.
• Debris typically gets rolled over, creating
additional damage.
 Wear Fundamentals
• Tribo-Corrosion
• Wear in the presence of corrosion can have
synergistic effect.
• Can happen with erosion or sliding wear.
• Bio-tribo-corrosion is major area
• Down-hole drilling environment is another
• ASTM Method G119 – Standard Guide for
Determining Synergism between Wear and
Corrosion
Wear Assessment
• The Wear Coefficient, k
• k → volume of material removed per unit load and sliding distance
• Units of k are:
• mm3/N⋅m
• Please do NOT reduce the units of k to mm2/N or 1/kPa
• This has no physical meaning
• k can be used to predict component lifetimes, providing the tribo-
system does not change wear modes
• Duty cycle and directionality can influence wear
• Start-stop can be much more damaging than continuous motion
• Unidirectional sliding is very different from reciprocating sliding