Design for Tribology: Theoretical and Practical Assessment in Modern Mechanical Components

A special issue of Lubricants (ISSN 2075-4442).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2022) | Viewed by 19534

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
GIULIANI, A Bucci Automations S.p.A. Division, Via Granarolo 167, 48018 Faenza, Italy
Interests: mechanical joints; bolted connections; mechanical transmissions; lightweigt design; failure analysis; machine tool

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Guest Editor
Department of Industrial Engineering (DIN), University of Bologna, Viale del Risorgimento, 2, 40136 Bologna, Italy
Interests: mechanical joints; bolted connections; mechanical transmissions; lightweigt design; additive manufactured components; fatigue strength
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Design for tribology (tribodesign) can be considered a branch of machine design dealing with mechanical elements where friction, lubrication, wear, and power losses play a significant role in the correct design. In fact, environmental awareness today plays an increasing and important task in material and lubricant selection. The growing challenge is obtaining novel solutions based on more efficient concepts and layouts for different kinds of machinery (from automotive to aerospace as well as from automatic machines to machine tool industries) in order to reduce power consumption and to satisfy the new green deal principles and paradigms as well.

For example, structural components are getting lighter by taking advantage of the favorable features offered by high strength steels, fiber-reinforced materials, titanium and aluminum alloys, even in cooperation with special coatings (DLC or plasma coatings). In addition, the modern production technique, so-called additive manufacturing (AM), has recently been applied to steel and aluminum components in order, on one side, to reduce the weight and to optimize the shape and, on the other, to save production time. These new techniques lead to a different behavior and results with respect to well-known tribological laws (one interesting example is given by gears produced via AM).

The aim of this Special Issue is to encourage scientists and researchers to publish their most recent experimental, theoretical, and computational results concerning tribological themes encountered in designing, realizing, and manufacturing machine elements, such as:

- Plain sliding bearings or rolling contact bearings;

- Pistons, piston rings, and cylinders;

- Cams and cam followers;

- Involute gears, hypoid gears and worm gears;

- Timing belts, pulleys and chain drives;

- Bolted joints and shaft-hub joints.

Dr. Nicolò Vincenzi
Prof. Dr. Dario Croccolo
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Lubricants is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Rolling
  • Sliding
  • Friction
  • Wear
  • Power losses
  • Efficiency
  • Power transmission
  • Mechanical joints

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 5530 KiB  
Article
Assessment of the Tribological Properties of the Steel/Polymer/Steel Sandwich Material LITECOR
by Tomasz Trzepieciński, Andrzej Kubit and Ján Slota
Lubricants 2022, 10(5), 99; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants10050099 - 14 May 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2297
Abstract
The article presents the results of tribological investigations into the steel/polymer/steel sandwich material LITECOR® developed by ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe for applications in the automotive industry. Friction tests were carried out by means of a strip drawing test with the use of a [...] Read more.
The article presents the results of tribological investigations into the steel/polymer/steel sandwich material LITECOR® developed by ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe for applications in the automotive industry. Friction tests were carried out by means of a strip drawing test with the use of a special tribotester mounted on a uniaxial tensile test machine. The influence of sheet deformation on the value of the coefficient of friction (COF) was considered. For this purpose, the samples were subjected to a pre-deformation of 4%, 8% and 12%. Friction tests were carried out with different force values and under different friction conditions, i.e., in dry friction conditions and lubrication of the sheet surface with L-AN 46 machine oil. The highest values of COF were observed for as-received sheets. In contrast, apart from the friction process under the conditions of the lowest force analysed, the lowest value of the COF was observed for pre-strained sheets with a deformation of 12%. The lubrication efficiency of the pre-strained strip specimens with ε = 4% was between 10.5% and 16.3%, with a trend of increasing lubrication efficiency with increasing force. For pre-strained sheets with deformation ε = 12%, there was a trend of decreasing effectiveness from 14.9% to 9.03% with an increase in force. Full article
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11 pages, 3442 KiB  
Article
Determination of the Preload of Bolts for Structural Health Monitoring of a Multi-Bolted Joint: FEM Approach
by Rafał Grzejda, Mariusz Warzecha and Kamil Urbanowicz
Lubricants 2022, 10(5), 75; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants10050075 - 19 Apr 2022
Cited by 17 | Viewed by 2648
Abstract
The reliability and safety of bolted joints is one of the crucial engineering problems during design of mechanical structures. In this paper, finite element method was used to investigate an asymmetrical, seven-bolted joint. The modelling takes into account the phenomenon of friction and [...] Read more.
The reliability and safety of bolted joints is one of the crucial engineering problems during design of mechanical structures. In this paper, finite element method was used to investigate an asymmetrical, seven-bolted joint. The modelling takes into account the phenomenon of friction and the mechanics of contact between the joined elements. The bolts were preloaded using two different approaches: single and multi-pass. The damage of a bolt was simulated by its removal from the model. The conducted research showed influence of the number of preloading passes and its order on the forces acting in bolts both before and after damage. The obtained results were validated by experimental tests and presented as force diagrams for all investigated cases. Full article
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13 pages, 3610 KiB  
Communication
Microstructure Examination and Sliding Wear Behavior of Al-15%Mg2Si-xGd In Situ Composites before and after Hot Extrusion
by Hamidreza Ghandvar, Mostafa Abbas Jabbar, Abdollah Bahador, Tuty Asma Abu Bakar, Nor Akmal Fadil and Katsuyoshi Kondoh
Lubricants 2022, 10(1), 3; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants10010003 - 24 Dec 2021
Viewed by 2422
Abstract
In current study; the effect of various Gadolinium (Gd) additions on the microstructure and sliding wear behaviour of Al-15%Mg2Si composite before and after the hot extrusion process was examined. Optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with EDX facility and [...] Read more.
In current study; the effect of various Gadolinium (Gd) additions on the microstructure and sliding wear behaviour of Al-15%Mg2Si composite before and after the hot extrusion process was examined. Optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with EDX facility and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to characterize the microstructure. The results showed that with addition of 1.0 wt.% Gd to Al-15%Mg2Si composite, the primary Mg2Si particles size reduced from 44 µm to 23 µm and its morphology altered from dendritic to polygonal shape. Further refinement of primary Mg2Si particles was achieved after conducting hot extrusion which resulted in a decrease in its size to 19 µm with a transfer to near-spherical morphology. The Vickers hardness value increased from 55.6 HV in the as-cast and unmodified composite to 72.9 HV in the extruded 1.0% Gd modified composite. The wear test results revealed that composites treated with Gd possess higher wear resistance in comparison with those of without Gd. The highest wear resistance obtained with the lowest wear rates of 0.19 mm3/km and 0.14 mm3/km in the Al-15%Mg2Si-1.0% Gd before and after the hot extrusion, respectively. The high wear resistance of extruded Gd-modified Al-15%Mg2Si composite is due to the refinement of primary Mg2Si particles with uniform distribution in the composite matrix along with fragmentation of Gd intermetallic compounds. Full article
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14 pages, 6142 KiB  
Article
Tribological Characterization of Polyether Ether Ketone (PEEK) Polymers Produced by Additive Manufacturing for Hydrodynamic Bearing Application
by Davide Massocchi, Giacomo Riboni, Nora Lecis, Steven Chatterton and Paolo Pennacchi
Lubricants 2021, 9(11), 112; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants9110112 - 21 Nov 2021
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3541
Abstract
The coating materials commonly used in hydrodynamic bearings are the so-called “Babbitt metals” or “white metals”, as defined by ASTM B23-00. Their low Young’s modulus and yield point have encouraged researchers to find new coatings to overcome these limitations. In this paper, the [...] Read more.
The coating materials commonly used in hydrodynamic bearings are the so-called “Babbitt metals” or “white metals”, as defined by ASTM B23-00. Their low Young’s modulus and yield point have encouraged researchers to find new coatings to overcome these limitations. In this paper, the friction and wear of PEEK are studied in a dry sliding environment (without lubrication) using a ball-on-disk tribometer and compared to those of Babbitt metal. Furthermore, the bond strength tests between PEEK and metals/alloys are evaluated. PEEK polymer samples were obtained from cylindrical rods, manufactured by an innovative process for polymer bonding on bearing surfaces, using additive manufacturing technology. The morphologies of the degraded surfaces were examined using a high-resolution metallurgical optical microscope (OM) and a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The coefficients of friction (CoF) were obtained under the alternating ball-on-disk dry tribometer. The results of the experimental activity show that PEEK polymers have CoFs of about 0.22 and 0.16 under the 1 and 5 N applied load, respectively. The CoF and wear volume loss results are reported and compared to the reference Babbitt coating. Full article
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13 pages, 2823 KiB  
Article
Friction and Wear Pattern of Silica-Reinforced Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR) in Sliding Contact with a Blade Indenter
by Budi Setiyana, Muhammad Khafidh, Mohammad Tauviqirrahman, Rifky Ismail, Jamari and Dirk Jan Schipper
Lubricants 2021, 9(11), 110; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants9110110 - 17 Nov 2021
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3417
Abstract
This study investigated the friction and wear pattern of silica-reinforced Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR) in sliding friction with a steel blade indenter. The experiments were conducted using a pin-on-disc tribometer at various applied loads and examined under dry and wet contact conditions. Analysis was [...] Read more.
This study investigated the friction and wear pattern of silica-reinforced Styrene-Butadiene Rubber (SBR) in sliding friction with a steel blade indenter. The experiments were conducted using a pin-on-disc tribometer at various applied loads and examined under dry and wet contact conditions. Analysis was focused on investigating the coefficient of friction and length of wear pattern spacing. Related to coefficient of friction identification, the abrasion theory was applied here. In addition, the stick-slip theory to identify the wear pattern spacing was also applied. Results of the experiments show that the overall coefficient of friction (COF) decreases along with the increasing applied loads. The COF in wet conditions is much lower at the beginning of sliding time than the COF in dry conditions. The wear pattern spacing increases with increasing loads. However, it seems that there is no significant difference in pattern spacing between the dry and wet contact condition. In general, the experimental results agree qualitatively with the analytical results. Full article
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19 pages, 5850 KiB  
Article
Geometrical Optimization of the EHL Roller Face/Rib Contact for Energy Efficiency in Tapered Roller Bearings
by Sven Wirsching, Max Marian, Marcel Bartz, Thomas Stahl and Sandro Wartzack
Lubricants 2021, 9(7), 67; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants9070067 - 22 Jun 2021
Cited by 14 | Viewed by 4047
Abstract
In the context of targeted improvements in energy efficiency, secondary rolling bearing contacts are gaining relevance. As such, the elastohydrodynamically lubricated (EHL) roller face/rib contact of tapered roller bearings significantly affects power losses. Consequently, this contribution aimed at numerical optimization of the pairing’s [...] Read more.
In the context of targeted improvements in energy efficiency, secondary rolling bearing contacts are gaining relevance. As such, the elastohydrodynamically lubricated (EHL) roller face/rib contact of tapered roller bearings significantly affects power losses. Consequently, this contribution aimed at numerical optimization of the pairing’s macro-geometric parameters. The latter were sampled by a statistical design of experiments (DoE) and the tribological behavior was predicted by means of EHL contact simulations. For each of the geometric pairings considered, a database was generated. Key target variables such as pressure, lubricant gap and friction were approximated by a meta-model of optimal prognosis (MOP) and optimization was carried out using an evolutionary algorithm (EA). It was shown that the tribological behavior was mainly determined by the basic geometric pairing and the radii while eccentricity was of subordinate role. Furthermore, there was a trade-off between high load carrying capacity and low frictional losses. Thereby, spherical or toroidal geometries on the roller end face featuring a large radius paired with a tapered rib geometry were found to be advantageous in terms of low friction. For larger lubricant film heights and load carrying capacity, spherical or toroidal roller on toroidal rib geometries with medium radii were favorable. Full article
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