Calculating Friction Force with Considering Material Microstructure and Potential on Contact Surfaces

A method based on energy dissipation mechanism of independent oscillator model is used to calculate the friction force and friction coefficient of interfacial friction. The friction work is calculated with considering potential change of contact surfaces during sliding. The potential change can be gained by a universal adhesive energy function. The relationships between friction force and parameters of a tribo-system, such as surface energy and microstructure of interfacial material, are set up. The calculation results of the known experimental data reveal that the friction force is nearly proportional to the surface energy of the material, nearly inverse proportional to the scaling length, and independent of the lattice constant. The results agree with that of adhesion friction equation. They also agree with the experimental results carried out with an atomic-force microscope under the ultra high vacuum condition.