Stability of thermoelastic sliding problem with contact pressure-dependent thermal contact resistance

Abstract

The sliding contact problem of a rigid indenter over an elastic body with constant temperature difference was investigated using finite element method by considering a contact pressure-dependent thermal resistance. The stability boundary was identified by inspecting the transient contact behaviors, which showed a linear relationship between two nondimensional parameters at the log scale. This proportionality resulted in a nondimensional ratio, which depended on temperature, contact resistance, and sliding speed in the case of unit nondimensional material properties, suggesting “critical temperature difference”. Moreover, the inclusion of Poisson ratio prevented the indefinite bifurcation behavior and led to a finite length scale in the steady state.