Flash temperature in sliding contacts: comparing theory with experiments

TL;DR

This paper evaluates an analytical theory predicting flash temperature in sliding contacts by comparing it with experimental results, showing good agreement within experimental uncertainties.

Contribution

It validates a multiscale roughness-based analytical theory for flash temperature against experimental data for steel-on-steel sliding.

Findings

The theory accurately predicts temperature increases within experimental uncertainties.

Good agreement between theory and experiments across multiple roughness scales.

The model's validity extends to surfaces with roughness spanning many decades in length scale.

Abstract

The temperature increase in the contact regions between solids in sliding contact has a huge influence on friction and wear. Here we test an analytical theory for the flash temperature, valid for randomly rough surface with multiscale roughness, by comparing the theory predictions with the experimental results of Sutter et al \cite{Sutter} for steel sliding on steel. The theory, which is based on the study of stress and temperature correlation functions, is valid for randomly rough surfaces with roughness on arbitrary many decades in length scale. Within the uncertainty of the experimental data (mainly the surface roughness power spectrum and the steel penetration hardness), there is good agreements between the theory and the experimental results.