Application of the Response Surface Method to the Tribological Analysis of a Medium-Carbon Steel Under Mild-Oxidational Wear

Abstract

Instead of using the conventional oxidation theory to depict a disk’s wear rate as a function of contact temperature, the response surface method (RSM) is herein introduced to relieve the one-factor-at-a-time defect in portraying tribological characteristics. By means of a central composite design technique, fewer operating conditions are needed to establish expressions for the wear rate parameter, the contact temperature and the friction coefficient as a function of sliding speed and applied load. A second degree polynomial was used to represent a curved surface which fits the experimental data. In addition to results for the designated operating conditions, wear rate parameters and contact temperatures obtained from the polynomials were compared with the experimental results. The activation energy in the wear rate expression can be derived from a function of sliding speed, applied load, and contact temperature. The experimental data for the wear rate parameter can be described by smooth curves, instead of two different straight lines in two temperature divisions.