An adhesive wear model of fractal surfaces in normal contact

A generalized adhesive wear analysis that takes into account the effect of interfacial adhesion on the total load was developed for three-dimensional fractal surfaces in normal contact. A wear criterion based on the critical contact area for fully-plastic deformation of the asperity contacts was used to model the removal of material from the contact interface. The fraction of fully-plastic asperity contacts, wear rate, and wear coefficient are expressed in terms of the total normal load (global interference), fractal (topography) parameters, elastic–plastic material properties, surface energy, material compatibility, and interfacial adhesion characteristics controlled by the environment of the interacting surfaces. Numerical results are presented for representative ceramic–ceramic, ceramic–metallic, and metal–metal contact systems to illustrate the dependence of asperity plastic deformation, wear rate, and wear coefficient on global interference, surface roughness, material properties, and work of adhesion (affected by the material compatibility and the environment of the contacting surfaces). The analysis yields insight into the effects of surface material properties and interfacial adhesion on the adhesive wear of rough surfaces in normal contact.