Abstract
WHEN a metal is cleaned in air, the surface will still be covered with a relatively thick layer of oxide and other adsorbed impurities. Friction measurements are usually made with metals coated in this way, and if a lubricant is added, it is superimposed on the surface films already present. Recent experiments1 show that an intermittent clutching and breaking away of the surfaces takes place during sliding. The results suggest that local adhesions may occur at the points of metallic contact, and that the sliding friction may be due to the making and breaking of these welded junctions. The molecular field of force at the surface of a solid is profoundly modified by the presence of an adsorbed layer, so that, if this view is correct, we should expect the surface film to have a large influence on the friction.
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References
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BOWDEN, F., HUGHES, T. Friction of Clean Metals and the Influence of Surface Films. Nature 142, 1039–1040 (1938). https://doi.org/10.1038/1421039b0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/1421039b0
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