Application of Elastic-Plastic Static Friction Models to Rough Surfaces With Asymmetric Asperity Distribution

Asymmetric height distribution in surface roughness is important in many engineering surfaces, such as in constant velocity (CV) joints, where specific manufacturing processes could result in such surfaces. Even if the initial surfaces exhibit symmetric roughness, the running-in and sliding processes could result in asymmetric roughness distributions. In this paper, the effect of asymmetric asperity height distribution on the static friction coefficient is investigated theoretically and experimentally. The asymmetry of the surface roughness is modeled using the Pearson system of frequency curves. Two elastic-plastic static friction models, the Kogut–Etsion (KE) and Cohen–Kligerman–Etsion (CKE) models are adapted to account for asymmetric roughness and employed to obtain the tangential and normal contact forces. Static friction experiments using CV joint roller and housing surfaces, which exhibit different levels of surface roughness, were performed and directly compared with the KE and CKE static friction models using both a symmetric Gaussian as well as Pearson distributions of asperity heights. It is found that the KE model with the Pearson distribution compares favorably with the experimental measurements.