Impact of multi-scaled surface textures on tribological performance of parallel sliding contact under lubricated condition

Single-scale textured sliding contacts are effective for low-load and high-speed operating conditions. However, most machine-driven components operate under dynamic load and speed conditions. Therefore, to effectively counteract the dynamic operating conditions, the idea of multi-scale textures is devised. The present work de-scribes the fabrication of multi-scale textured surfaces through Nd: YAG laser. Also, the effect of area density and texture depth of multi-scale textured surfaces on tribological parameters like frictional coefficient and wear rate was analyzed through a Pin-on-disc test rig. The results depict that in most loading conditions, the area density of 0.3 and the texture depth of 10 mu m exhibit better tribological properties. Moreover, the obtained experimental results are in-line with numerical results.