Analysis of the Contact Area of Smooth and Rough Surfaces in Contact with Sphere Indenter Using Finite Element Method

Abstract

This paper analyzes the contact area of the contact between a deformable rough surface (smooth and rough) and a hard smooth sphere indenter using finite element method. A method was introduced to generate a three dimensional rough surfaces using Computer Aided Design (CAD) software. The rough surface model was developed based on the surface measurement data, while the smooth surface model was generated from the CAD software. Contact area and contact deformation were analyzed. Results showed that the contact area between rough surface versus sphere and smooth surface versus sphere is different.

Keywords

• rough surface
• finite element simulation
• contact area
• contact pressure