ABSTRACT
Tribology made huge advances in the twentieth century. It started with the research of liquid lubrication by Stribeck, which, with the contribution of others, resulted in the Stribeck curve. The molecular theory of friction was resurrected. Hardy investigated and baptised the boundary friction, and Bowden and Tabor created an enormous body of work. Their efforts were particularly important in explaining the origin of dry friction via adhesion and the ploughing of asperities. New instruments enabled the investigation of the fundamentals of friction on the microscopic and atomic scales. Finally, substantial progress was made in the mathematical modelling of friction and the development of solid lubricants.
