Where can I get a list of friction coefficients for different materials?
Asked by: Ahmed HAnswer
Coefficients of friction must be given for two materials, not one. Therefore there is no coefficient of friction for steel for example. There is a coefficient of friction for 'steel on steel'. If we think this way it is not realistic to have all coefficients of frictions for all material pairs listed. However, if you mean whether there is any list for at least some material pairs (especially those we face with everyday life) then you can look up in: CRC Handbook of Physical Quantities, Boca Raton : CRC Press, c1997, p 145-156. Some textbooks also have some limited amount of data, for example, this is what you can find in Serway Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 4th edition (p. 126.):| Materials | Coeff. of Static Friction  s | Coeff. of Kinetic Friction k |
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| Steel on Steel | 0.74 | 0.57 |
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| Aluminum on Steel | 0.61 | 0.47 |
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| Copper on Steel | 0.53 | 0.36 |
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| Rubber on Concrete | 1.0 | 0.8 |
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| Wood on Wood | 0.25 - 0.5 | 0.2 |
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| Glass on Glass | 0.94 | 0.4 |
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| Waxed wood on Wet snow | 0.14 | 0.1 |
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| Waxed wood on Dry snow | - | 0.04 |
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| Metal on Metal (lubricated) | 0.15 | 0.06 |
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| Ice on Ice | 0.1 | 0.03 |
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| Teflon on Teflon | 0.04 | 0.04 |
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| Synovial joints in humans | 0.01 | 0.003 |
Answered by: Ertan Salik, M.A. Physics, USC | ||
