Tribological performance of surface texturing in mechanical applications - a review

Abstract

Surface textures have been of great interest within the tribology community with nearly 1500 paperspublished on this topic in the past two decades. With the pursuit of low emissions and environmentalsustainability, the application of surface texturing to mechanical systems to lower friction and controlwear is attracting increasing attention. There is no doubt that certain textured surfaces can have abeneficial effect on tribological performance but it is widely agreed that the optimization of texturesshould be carried out based on specific requirements of applications. The purpose of this review articleis to summarize the current state of the art in surface texturing applied to mechanical applications(cutting tools, piston-ring & cylinder liners, sealing and journal bearings)from the following aspects:application requirements, numerical/experimental testing and validation, and tribological perfor-mance of textured surfaces(wear and friction), as well as the limitations in texture designs whenapplied to certain applications. Patterns/grooves in the micron-scale are the most typical shapes beenstudied, and benefits of partial texturing are applicable for most of these mechanical applications.Friction reduction of up to 34.5% in cutting tools, 82% in piston-ring & cylinder-liners, 65% in sealsand 18% in journal bearings have been observed by experimental tests. Based on primary evidencefrom the literature, the last section provides general suggestions on current gaps in understanding andmodelling and suggestions for future research directions.

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ORCID for Robert Wood: orcid.org/0000-0003-0681-9239

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