Active contacts control sliding friction.

ABSTRACT: Sliding friction between two dry surfaces is commonly described by the speed-independent Amonton-Coulomb friction force law. However, there are many situations where multiple frictional contact points between two surfaces are "active" and each can move at a different relative speed. Here, we study the sliding friction properties of a system with multiple active contacts each with independent and controllable speed. We demonstrate that multiple active contacts can produce controllable speed-dependent sliding friction forces, despite each individual contact exhibiting a speed-independent friction. We study in experiment a rotating carousel with ten speed-controlled wheels in frictional contact with the ground. We first vary the contact speeds and demonstrate that the equilibrium system speed

SUBMITTER: Shah R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12280940 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature