Thermal Effects in Contacts

Abstract

On the contact interface between two bodies in frictional contact with one another, heat energy is released. Because the real contact area is, as a rule, only a fraction of the apparent contact area, the heat released in a tribological contact is very heterogeneous. The local temperature increases can be so high that they may influence the material properties and can even cause the material to melt. Furthermore, a local change in the temperature leads to a local heat expansion and, thus, a corresponding change in the contact conditions. This feedback reaction can, under certain conditions, lead to the development of thermo-mechanical instabilities in the contact. In this chapter, we investigate the various aspects of the frictionally caused heat release in tribological contacts.