An analytical study of the wear pattern of an abraded rubber surface: the interaction model

The relationship between the volume loss rate and the wear pattern along an abraded rubber surface has been confirmed. Experimentally, long and short pattern spacings are formed along the abraded direction that, respectively, represent the initial and final pattern spacings. By modelling the abrasion, or the sliding contact, as a vibration system, an analytical study to identify the pattern spacing is carried out. There are two proposed interaction models of the contact between the rubber surface and the abrader, i.e. separation and unification, thus, the interaction along the sliding contact is a combination of both. It is confirmed that the separation model is correlated to the initial pattern spacing. The results are obtained that the final pattern spacing not only depends on the static load of the abrader but also depends on the dynamic load due to the inertia effect of the moving parts of abrasion apparatus.