Stick-Slip Phenomena and Acoustic Emission in the Hertzian Linear Contact

Abstract

AE detection and analysis usually requires a specific, costly platform due to its particular burst nature and high-frequency content. This experimental study investigates the relationship between low-demand acoustic emission parameters (AE) and the occurrence of stick–slip (SS) at the Hertzian linear contact. Hence, the correlation of basic AE characteristics (amplitude, energy, and evolution in time) with stick–slip characteristics (static and kinetic friction coefficients, amplitude, energy, and evolution in time) is pursued. Tribological tests were conducted on cylinder–plane specimens under dry friction conditions with different loads at different low driving speeds and Hertzian contact pressures at a constant stiffness. The AE, normal, and friction forces were recorded simultaneously on the experimental stand. At the cylinder–plane interface, the jumps specific to the stick–slip phenomenon (friction coefficient—COF) were followed after a few milliseconds by AE jump peaks. The results of the experiments show that the amplitude and energy generated by AE were sensitive to the occurrence of the stick–slip phenomenon, while the AE and COF energies in the stick and slip phases had the same law of variation based on the driving velocities. The results show that the amplitude and energy of the sampled low-frequency AE signals were enough to detect the friction in SS and demonstrate the potential of AE as a tool for detecting and monitoring the tribological behaviour of SS at the linear Hertzian contact.