Roughness Effect in Micropitting and Rolling Contact Fatigue of Silicon Nitride

Abstract

An experimental analysis of the role of surface roughness parameters on micropitting and the succeeding rolling contact fatigue (RCF) of silicon nitride against AISI 52100 steel under lubricated conditions was performed. In accelerated fatigue tests using a four-ball tester, the arithmetic mean, root mean square, and peak-to-valley roughnesses of silicon nitride surfaces varied, while the roughness of the steel surface was unchanged. The correlation between the fatigue life and roughness parameters for silicon nitride was obtained. The peak-to-valley roughness was the roughness parameter that dominantly affected the RCF life of silicon nitride. The micropitting of surfaces leading to fatigue intensified as the roughness was increased. Extensive micropitting was observed on the rolling track beyond the trailing edge of the spall region in the circumferential direction.