Taylor Castagna
Friction and Wear of Materials – MANE 6963
HW 1_Prob 1
With a relatively small normal load (<1 N) the corresponding wear rate will be small. This is termed mild
wear and most likely produces fine particles due to the rubbing of the surfaces.
As the load increases (10 N) the wear rate becomes much larger. This is indicative of a change in wear
mechanism and is described as severe wear.
When the load is increased again (10^2 N), the resulting wear rate decreases which shows a transition into
the high temperature region of mild wear. The flash temperatures cause a rapid hardening of the surface
and the harder surface prevents removal of material.