The Contact of Two Nominally Flat Rough Surfaces
01 Jun 1970-Vol. 185, Iss: 1, pp 625-633
TL;DR: In this article, the authors give a general theory of contact between two rough plane surfaces and show that the important results of the previous models are unaffected: in particular, the load and the area of contact remain almost proportional, independently of the detailed mechanical and geometrical properties of the asperities.
Abstract: Most models of surface contact consider the surface roughness to be on one of the contacting surfaces only. The authors give a general theory of contact between two rough plane surfaces. They show that the important results of the previous models are unaffected: in particular, the load and the area of contact remain almost proportional, independently of the detailed mechanical and geometrical properties of the asperities. Further, a single-rough-surface model can always be found which will predict the same laws as a given two-rough-surface model, although the required model may be unrealistic. It does not seem possible to deduce the asperity shape or deformation mode from the load-compliance curve.
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the techniques, advances, problems and likely future developments in numerical modelling for rock mechanics and discuss the value that is obtained from the modelling, especially the enhanced understanding of those mechanisms initiated by engineering perturbations.
976 citations
Cites methods from "The Contact of Two Nominally Flat R..."
...The work is based mainly on principles established in Greenwood and Williamson (1966) [639] and Greenwood and Tripp (1971) [640] simulating the contacts, friction and wear of rough surfaces....
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TL;DR: In this article, an elastic-plastic asperity microcontact model for contact between two nominally flat surfaces is presented, where the transition from elastic deformation to fully plastic flow of the contacting as perity is modeled based on contact-mechanics theories in conjunction with the continuity and smoothness of variables across different modes of deformation.
Abstract: This paper presents an elastic-plastic asperity microcontact model for contact between two nominally flat surfaces. The transition from elastic deformation to fully plastic flow of the contacting asperity is modeled based on contact-mechanics theories in conjunction with the continuity and smoothness of variables across different modes of deformation. The relations of the mean contact pressure and contact area of the asperity to its contact interference in the elastoplastic regime of deformation are respectively modeled by logarithmic and fourth-order polynomial functions. These asperity-scale equations are then used to develop the elastic-plastic contact model between two rough surfaces, allowing the mean surface separation and the real area of contact to be calculated as functions of the contact load and surface plasticity index. Results are presented for a wide range of contact load and plasticity index, showing the importance of accurately modeling the deformation in the elastoplastic transitional regime of the asperity contacts. The results are also compared with those calculated by the GW and CEB models, showing that the present model is more complete in describing the contact of rough surfaces.
638 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, a finite element study of elasto-plastic hemispherical contact is presented, and the results are normalized such that they are valid for macro contacts (e.g., rolling element bearings), although micro-scale surface characteristics such as grain boundaries are not considered.
Abstract: This work presents a finite element study of elasto-plastic hemispherical contact. The results are normalized such that they are valid for macro contacts (e.g., rolling element bearings) and micro contacts (e.g., asperity contact), although micro-scale surface characteristics such as grain boundaries are not considered. The material is modeled as elastic-perfectly plastic. The numerical results are compared to other existing models of spherical contact, including the fully plastic truncation model (often attributed to Abbott and Firestone) and the perfectly elastic case (known as the Hertz contact). This work finds that the fully plastic average contact pressure, or hardness, commonly approximated to be a constant factor of about three times the yield strength, actually varies with the deformed contact geometry, which in turn is dependent upon the material properties (e.g., yield strength). The current work expands on previous works by including these effects and explaining them theoretically. Experimental and analytical results have also been shown to compare well with the current work. The results are fit by empirical formulations for a wide range of interferences (displacements which cause normal contact between the sphere and rigid flat) and materials for use in other applications.
558 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the effect of the mode of deformation on the value of thermal conductance of flat surfaces in contact has been investigated and explicit expressions for thermal contact conductance were derived for cases of: (1) pure plastic deformation (2) plastic deformations of the asperities and elastic deformation of the substrate, and (3) pure elastic deformations on the substrate.
519 citations
01 Jan 2014
TL;DR: In this article, a new numerical approach that is simple and robust, capable of handling three-dimensional measured engineering rough surfaces moving at different rolling and sliding velocities is presented.
Abstract: contacts is presented in this paper, using a new numerical approach that is simple and robust, capable of handling three-dimensional measured engineering rough surfaces moving at different rolling and sliding velocities. The equation system and the numerical procedure are unified for a full coverage of all the lubrication regions including the full film, mixed and boundary lubrication. In the hydrodynamically lubricated areas the Reynolds equation is used. In the asperity contact areas, where the film thickness is zero, the Reynolds equation is reduced to an expression equivalent to the mathematical description of dry contact problem. In order to save computing time, a multi-level integration method is used to calculate surface deformation. Sample cases under severe condition show that this approach is capable of analyzing different cases in a full range of l ratio, from infinitely large down to nearly zero (less than 0.03).
430 citations
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a new theory of elastic contact, which is more closely related to real surfaces than earlier theories, and showed how the contact deformation depends on the topography of the surface, and established the criterion for distinguishing surfaces which touch elastically from those which touch plastically.
Abstract: It is usually assumed that the real area of contact between two nominally flat metal surfaces is determined by the plastic deformation of their highest asperities. This leads at once to the result that the real area of contact is directlyproportional to the load and independent of the apparent area-a result with many applications in the theories of electric contacts and friction. Archard pointed out that plastic deformation could not be the universal rule, and introduced a model which showed that, contrary to earlier ideas, the area of contact could be proportional to the load even with purely elastic contact. This paper describes a new theory of elastic contact, which is more closely related to real surfaces than earlier theories. We show how the contact deformation depends on the topography of the surface, and establish the criterion for distinguishing surfaces which touch elastically from those which touch plastically. The theory also indicates the existence of an 'elastic contact hardness', a composite quantity depending on the elastic properties and the topography, which plays the same role in elastic contact as the conventional hardness does in plastic contact. A new instrument for measuring surface topography has been built; with it the various parameters shown by the theory to govern surface contact can be measured experimentally. The typical radii of surface asperities have been measured. They were found, surprisingly, to be orders of magnitude larger than the heights of the asperities. More generally we have been able to study the distributions of asperity heights and of other surface features for a variety of surfaces prepared by standard techniques. Using these data we find that contact between surfaces is frequently plastic, as usually assumed, but that surfaces which touch elastically are by no means uncommon in engineering practice.
5,371 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a simplified theoretical model of this behaviour is obtained by extending R. Hill's theory of expanding a cylindrical or spherical cavity in an elastic-plastic material to ensure compatibility between the volume of material displaced by the indenter and that accommodated by elastic expansion.
Abstract: The theory of rigid perfectly-plastic solids predicts indentation pressures, using wedge-shaped or conical indenters, which depend only on the geometry of the indenter and the yield stress of the material. With blunt wedges or with materials having a low ratio of Young's modulus, E, to yield stress, Y, the material displaced by the indenter is accommodated by an approximately radial expansion of the surrounding material. The indentation pressure then falls below the rigid perfectly-plastic value. In these circumstances, measurements of indentation pressure for a variety of indenter geometries are shown to correlate with the single parameter (E/Y) tan β, where β is the angle of inclination of the indenter to the surface at the edge of the indentation. This parameter may be interpreted as the ratio of the strain imposed by the indenter to the yield strain of the material.
A simplified theoretical model of this behaviour is obtained by extending R. Hill's theory of expanding a cylindrical or spherical cavity in an elastic-plastic material to ensure compatibility between the volume of material displaced by the indenter and that accommodated by elastic expansion.
1,137 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a simple formulation of flash temperature theory is given, which reduces the mathematical complexities and instead emphasises the relevant physical considerations, and the use of the theory is illustrated by some new experimental results on the breakdown of Perspex and the wear of steels.
961 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined whether the hypothesis of elastic deformation of surface protuberances is consistent with Amontons's law, that the friction is proportional to the applied load.
Abstract: This paper examines whether the hypothesis of elastic deformation of surface protuberances is consistent with Amontons’s law, that the friction is proportional to the applied load. For a single elastic contact, the area of contact A is known to be proportional to the ⅔ power of the load W . Since the frictional force is generally assumed to be proportional to A , it has been thought that in elastic deformation Amontons’s law would not be obeyed. However, conforming surfaces usually touch at many points, and it is shown that in these circumstances A and W become nearly proportional. Experiments are described which show that the general law is that the friction is proportional to the true area of contact; whether or not Amontons’s law is obeyed depends upon the surface topography. For highly elastic materials such as Perspex, Amontons’s law is obeyed when contact is made at many points, and other relations between A and W are observed when the contacts are few. Experiments with lubricated brass specimens show that the same conclusions apply to carefully prepared or well run-in metal surfaces running in conditions where the damage is small.
877 citations
837 citations