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Deterministic contact modeling based on half-space theories has satisfied a wide range of applications. However, the half-space theories themselves do not involve shape effects of roughness on Green's functions/influence coefficients; in deterministic rough-surface contact analyses, the roughness is considered in gap function. This approach can be called the “roughness simplification”. One needs to answer two questions about the validity of the roughness simplification: How appropriate is the roughness simplification in modeling rough-surface contacts? How accurate can the commonly-included contact-plasticity behavior be captured under the roughness simplification? This work utilized a double-scale representation of an asperity--a microscopic deformable asperity stacked on a deformable half-space, to obtain their combined contact responses in both elastic and plastic regimes. The deformation and contact behaviors of asperities thus configured were obtained with finite element method (FEA) and rough-surface half-space contact solvers. Three stages of asperity contact were discovered: the Hertzian stage, the single-region elastoplastic stage, and the two-region elastoplastic stage where the surrounding base material also takes part in the contact. The comparisons of contact deformation and pressure results from both the FEA and half-space contact solvers support the validity of the half-space theories with the roughness simplification for various ellipsoid-shape asperities with circular-bases in both elastic and elastoplastic rough-surface asperity modeling. The research also reveals that when significant plastic deformations occur, asperities with different aspect ratios can bear different maximum elastoplastic contact pressures.

This study investigates the rheological properties, elastohydrodynamic (EHD) film-forming capability, and friction coefficients of low molecular mass poly-α-olefin (PAO) base stocks with varying contents of high molecular mass olefin copolymers (OCPs) to assess their shear stability and their potential for energy-efficient lubrication. Several PAO–OCP mixtures were blended in order to examine the relationship between their additive content and tribological performance. Gel permeation chromatography (GPC) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy were used to characterize the molecular masses and structures, respectively. Density, viscosity, EHD film thickness, and friction were measured at 303 K, 348 K, and 398 K. Film thickness and friction were studied at entrainment speeds relevant to the boundary, mixed, and full-film lubrication regimes. The PAO–OCP mixtures underwent temporary shear-thinning resulting in decreases in film thickness and hydrodynamic friction. These results demonstrate that the shear characteristics of PAO–OCP mixtures can be tuned with the OCP content and provide insight into the effects of additives on EHD characteristics.

Siloxane-based polymers (polysiloxanes) are susceptible to temporary shear-thinning that manifests as a reduction of elastohydrodynamic film thickness with increasing entrainment speed or effective shear rate. The departure from Newtonian film thickness can be predicted with the power-law exponent ns, an indicator of the severity of shear-thinning in a polymeric fluid that is influenced by the macromolecular structure. In this paper, a combination of extant rheological and tribological models is applied to determine the power-law exponent of several polysiloxanes using film thickness measurements. Film thickness data at several temperatures and slide-to-roll ratios are used to validate the methodology for several siloxane-based polymers with alkyl and aryl branches.

Single- and dual-cathode DC magnetron sputtering was used to produce TiB 2 coatings and CN x /ZrN multilayers, respectively, with hardness exceeding 40 GPa. The composition, structure, topography, and mechanical properties were determined by various techniques, including Auger electron spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, high-resolution electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and nanoindentation. An optimum combination of the sputtering pressure and substrate bias results in the production of ultrasmooth TiB 2 coatings with hardness up to 50 GPa and excellent wetting properties. The rationale for studying the CN x /ZrN system is that ZrN(111) provides excellent lattice match to the hypothetical β-C 3 N 4 (0001) face (β-C 3 N 4 was predicted to have mechanical properties comparable to diamond). Using a dual-cathode sputtering system, we produced crystalline multilayers of CN x /ZrN with bilayer thickness of 1-2 nm. Using various combinations of nitrogen partial pressure, target powers, and substrate bias, we found that the hardness of these coatings correlates very strongly with the occurrence of (111) texture of ZrN, consistent with the lattice-match strategy. Even with a ZrN volume fraction of 70 percent, such multilayer coatings have been synthesized with hardness in the 50 GPa regime.

Siloxane-based polymers (polysiloxanes) exhibit a range of volume, viscosity, and pressure-viscosity behaviors that are strongly influenced by the macromolecular structure. In this report, a combination of extant rheological models is applied to develop a molecular-rheological modeling formalism that predicts polysiloxane rheological properties, such as specific volume, which means density, viscosity, and pressure-viscosity index variations with macromolecular structure, pressure, and temperature. Polysiloxane molecular features are described in terms of alkyl branch length L, pendant type J, density of branch functional monomers Q, and degree of polymerization DP. Both new and published data are used for model parameter determination and validation. Several siloxane-based polymers with alkyl, aryl, alkyl-aryl, cycloalkyl, and halogenated branches were synthesized to examine the modeled relationship between their molecular structures and rheological behaviors.

This paper deals with the distribution of asperity temperatures in the nominal contact area for purely longitudinal rough surfaces. It was found that the size of the largest asperity is proportional to the bearing length, from which we deduced a logarithmic relationship between the cumulative number of asperities and the asperity size. Combining these results with the roughness model developed in Part I of this series, we calculated the distribution of asperity temperatures and the effect of asperity interactions. These results are in reasonably good agreement with another model based on direct numerical analysis. The major advantage of our model is its faster speed in obtaining these results.

This paper describes a model to study the contact between two purely longitudinally rough surfaces based on the parabolic indentor problem in elasticity. Rough surfaces are characterized with three parameters: rms roughness, autocorrelation length, and bearing area. Problems encountered by conventional roughness models are treated here. It is shown that the average contact pressure and real contact area obtained from this model agree very well with a computationally more intensive model developed by Lee (1989), up to the bulk yielding pressure.

A special imaging mode of the scanning tunneling microscope (STM) based on charge trapping was used to probe the uniformity of lubricant distribution on magnetic thin film rigid disks at resolutions of better than 35 nm. Electron beam deposited STM tips were used to achieve this resolution. Coupons from untested rigid disks and those subjected to wear in dry helium and humid air were examined. We also examined coupons of an untested disk on which a scratch mark was made with a ferrite pin. It was found that the lubricant layer was nonuniform in the scratched region.

We present results of a study of hemispherical pins of manganese-zinc ferrite sliding against rigid disks composed of thin films of a sputtered cobalt-nickel-platinum alloy and carbon, with perfluoropolyether as the topical lubricant. The contact life, as marked by the total distance slid to the point at which the coefficient of friction increases rapidly over the steady state value, is much longer in air with 50 percent relative humidity than in dry air or vacuum. The wear debris generated in humid air is much finer and is enriched with cobalt on its surface. In dry air and vacuum, the debris is substantially larger than one micron and tends to be enriched with nickel on its surface. We present a hypothesis which explains the wear mechanisms in various operating environments.