The effect of surface texturing on reducing the friction and wear of steel under lubricated sliding contact

Surface texturing is a widely used approach to improve the load capacity, the wear resistance, and the friction coefficient of tribological mechanical components. This study experimentally investigates the effect of surface texturing on reducing friction and wear. A numerical model of the load carrying capacity of multi-dimples is developed to analyze the relevant mechanism, and the effect of surface texturing on different dimple area fractions is evaluated to determine the optimal dimple pattern. The results show that surface texturing is important for reducing friction and wear. Changes in dimple area fraction can dramatically reduce friction and wear. The results indicate a 5% optimal dimple area fraction can generate the greatest hydrodynamic pressure compared with other fractions and can reduce friction and wear up to 38% and 72%, respectively. The theoretical model and the experimental results are found to be closely correlated. The generation of hydrodynamic pressure, the function of micro-trap for wear debris and the micro-reservoirs for lubricant retention are the main causes for the reduction in the friction and wear of the surface texturing.