An investigation of the role of low cycle fatigue in producing surface damage in sliding metallic friction

Abstract Experiments are described in which a hard wedge was indented into a relatively soft surface and then slid along it under well-lubricated conditions. Results are given of a metallographic investigation of the damage in the deformed layer caused by this process. Particular attention is paid to the influence of repeated uni-directional sliding of the wedge over the same length of surface. The relevance of these results to the prediction of wear in sliding metallic friction is considered.