Abstract
Movement between contacting surfaces ranges from macro to micro scales, from the movement of continental plates and glaciers to the locomotion of animals and insects. Surface topographies, lubricant layers, contaminants, operating conditions, and others control it, i.e., this movement depends on the tribological characteristics of a system. Before the industrial revolution, friction and wear were controlled by the application of animal fat or oil. During the industrial revolution, with the introduction of trains and other machinery, the operating conditions at the contacting surfaces changed dramatically. New bearings were designed and built and simple lubrication measures were no longer satisfactory. It became critical to understand the lubrication mechanisms involved. During that period, solid theoretical foundations, leading to the development of new technologies, were laid. The field of tribology had gained a significant prominence, i.e., it became clear that without advancements in tribology the technological progress would be limited. It was no longer necessary to build oversized ship bearings hoping that they would work. The ship or automobile bearings could now be optimized and their behavior predicted. By the middle of the 20th century, lubrication mechanisms in non-conformal contacts, i.e., in gears, rolling contact bearings, cams and tappets, etc., were also finally understood.
Today, we face new challenges such as sustainability, climate change and gradual degradation of the environment. Problems of providing enough food, clean water and sufficient energy to the human population to pursue a civilized life still remain largely unsolved. These challenges require new solutions and innovative approaches. As the humanity progresses, tribology continue to make vital contributions in addressing the demands for advanced technological developments, resulting in, for example, reducing the fuel consumption and greenhouse gases emission, increasing machine durability and improving the quality of life through artificial implants, among the others.
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Gwidon STACHOWIAK. He is the Head of the Tribology Laboratory at the School of Mechanical and Civil Engineering, Curtin University in Western Australia. His current work is focused on the development of methods for the characterization of multiscale 3D surface topographies, prediction of osteoarthritis in knee joints based on X-ray images and tribocorrosion. He is the editor of Tribology and Practice book series published by John Wiley and member of the editorial boards of several tribological and bio-medical journals. He is also a member of several international committees including the Executive Committee of the International Energy Agency, Research and Development of Advanced Materials for Transportation. Professor Stachowiak has published extensively and wrote/contributed to several books. He is the leading author of the books “Engineering Tribology” and “Experimental Methods in Tribology” published by Elsevier. In 2014, he was awarded Tribology Gold Medal, the World’s Highest Award in Tribology in recognition of his outstanding contribution to tribology while in 2012, he was awarded the title of Doctor Honoris Causa from the Ecole Centrale de Lyon, France.
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Stachowiak, G.W. How tribology has been helping us to advance and to survive. Friction 5, 233–247 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-017-0173-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-017-0173-7