TRIBOLOGY - PRINCIPLES AND APPLICATIONS IN SURFACE FINISHING

Tribology is the science of contacting surfaces in relative motion and involves the study of friction, wear and lubrication. It is essentially an applied science since the particular conditions of the application have a crucial influence on performance and tribological studies are generally directed at achieving solutions to practical problems. Economic analyses carried out over the last 25 years have shown that approximately 1.5% of the GNP of an industrialized country can currently be saved by the control of tribological behaviour and the first 20% of this could be saved without significant investment. The principles of surface topography, contact between surfaces, friction, lubrication and wear are explained. The role of surface finishing in the control of war is discussed alongside examples of coating selection for engineering applications.