Effect of Surface Microtexturing on Friction at Unidirectional Sliding Depending on Lubricant Viscosity

Effect of surface microtexturing with spherical dimples of 60 μm diameter on friction behaviour of steel 100Cr6/sapphire pairs was studied as function of lubricant viscosity. Tests were run at unidirectional sliding up to 0.30 m/s using a pellet-on-disc geometry with flat contact area and drip lubrication with liquids such as glycerine-water solutions, distilled water and different mineral oils without additives. The texture pattern was produced on the polished sapphire discs by laser ablation processes. Friction force and film thickness of the lubricating liquid were continuously measured during the tests at different sliding velocities. Results showed that effectiveness of microtexturing in reducing friction and increasing load-carrying capacity depended on viscosity of the lubricant, operating conditions such as sliding velocity and applied load as well as texture parameters.