SEDL / STP / STP144-EB / STP46114S

The Current Status of Fretting Corrosion

Campbell, W. E.
Bell Telephone Laboratories, Inc., Murray Hill, N. J.

Pages: 22    Published: Jan 1952

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Abstract

A general discussion of fretting wear of metal surfaces is presented. It is concluded that the phenomenon is not corrosion in the usual sense, but wear due to oscillatory relative motion of sufficiently high amplitude to cause gross slip between the contacting surfaces, accelerated in certain cases by abrasive oxide films formed as a result of the wear. The only measure which eliminates wear entirely is the elimination of gross slip between the metal surfaces. This can be done by reducing the amplitude of the oscillatory motion or by interposing between the surfaces a material of high enough shear elasticity to prevent gross relative motion. Other methods of mitigating fretting are discussed and suggestions for future research on the mechanism are given.