Finite element analysis of fretting contact for dissimilar and nonhomogeneous materials

Fretting problem arises in the case of relatively small sliding motion between contacting surfaces leading to reduction in fatigue life of these parts significantly. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of fretting on the contact region in a cylindrical on flat contact configuration. In order to identify fretting contact, a finite element (FE) model was constructed by using commercial finite element package ABAQUSTM. Fretting contact is studied under two types of loading: tangential loading of the pad and axial bulk stress loading of the specimen. The numerical calculated stresses are compared with Mindlin analytical solution and Nowell and Hills analytical solution (which includes the effect of bulk stress). In order to get a better estimate of fretting in real type structures such as bolted joints and lug type structures, dissimilar materials in the contact region are then studied. For dissimilar materials, in the light of the conducted numerical analysis, Mindlin solution does not give reliable results in terms of shear traction distribution when compared to FE results. Finally, the effect of non-homogeneity in materials is investigated by addition of circular voids.