Friction Behavior of Rough Surfaces on the Basis of Contact Mechanics: A Review and Prospects

Contact and friction are closely related as friction cannot happen without contact. They are widely used in mechanical engineering, traffic, and other fields. The real contact surface is not completely smooth, but it is made up of a series of tiny contact asperities as viewed in the micro-scale. This is just the complexity of the contact and friction behaviors of rough surfaces: the overall mechanical behavior is the result of all asperities which are involved during the contact. Due to the multiplicity of surface topography, the complexity of contact scale, and the nonlinearity of the constitutive material, there are still many open topics in the research of contact and friction behavior of rough surfaces. Based on the perspective of the macroscopic and micro-nano scale contact mechanics, this review gives a brief overview of friction for the latest developments and points out the existing issues and opportunities for future studies.