Frictional Behavior of Wax–Oil Gels Against Steel

Frictional behavior of wax–oil gels against steel has been investigated using a homemade tribometer to estimate the frictional resistant force produced by wax plugs in pipelines pigging. Experimental results show that there are several impact factors on frictional behavior of wax–oil gels against steel, including wax concentration, normal force and velocity. Coefficient of sliding friction increases with wax concentration. Normal load and velocity have opposite impacts on the coefficient of sliding friction. The outflow mineral oil has an important impact in the frictional process. A mechanism model of wax–oil gels against steel is built based on the results.