ABSTRACT
When two metallic surfaces are loaded together and one surface slides over the other, considerably thick oxide films can be formed on the sliding surfaces if the normal pressure and sliding speed are appropriate. Such oxide films will strongly affect the behavior of friction and the wear of contacting metals. This kind of oxidation can be defined as tribo-oxidation. Many investigators have carried out studies relevant to tribooxidation over many decades. The topics of research into this area can roughly be divided into three groups: (a) the formation and effects of oxides on friction characteristics of metals; (b) the thermal aspect of sliding contact; and (c) the wear rate and wear mechanism of tribo-oxidation. The last one is commonly known as oxidational wear. Because the formation of metallic oxides on sliding surfaces depends on frictional heating and the wear rate is affected by the type of oxides as well as the combination of sliding velocity and normal load, many studies take the three groups as a whole to obtain a complete view on the problem. A brief review on such topics is given below, whereas a more detailed discussion is provided later on.
