Effects of vibration frequency and amplitude on friction reduction and wear characteristics of silicon

The effects of vibration on friction reduction of silicon, aluminum-coated silicon, and aluminum plate sliding against a silicon nitride ball were assessed under various conditions. It was found that friction coefficient could be decreased significantly to 0.1 for all specimens at specific vibration frequency ranges. Also, vibration in the vertical direction resulted in the highest friction reduction of silicon compared to the longitudinal and tangential directions. As for the wear characteristics, it was found that the least amount of wear occurred on silicon followed by aluminum coating and aluminum plate specimens. Though the amount of wear depended on the vibration frequency, the frequency that led to low friction did not necessarily correspond to low wear.