Contact Between Elastic Bodies With an Elliptic Contact Interface in Torsion

Abstract

When two elastic three-dimensional bodies of specified radii come into contact, Hertzian forces at the interface result in the formation of an elliptical contact area. The rotation of one body relative to the other about an axis normal to the contact induces a nonlinear torque due to the progression of sliding in the contact interface. Using finite element analysis, a relationship describing torsional compliance with slip is presented for two elastic bodies with an elliptic contact interface under pure twist. The effect of changing material and geometric parameters is studied, and the relationships between torque generation and angle are defined with respect to these nondimensionalized parameters.