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It is one oft he major challenges for materials scientists and mechanical engineers to cope with the demands for long lasting and reliable systems in all markets and for all applications. The loss of energy by friction and the limits of endurance by wear can be countered by well selected materials and surfaces. The economical and ecological significance of wear and friction is undisputed and can equate to between 1 and 4% of the gross national products of industrial countries. Although the basic understanding of the mechanisms of friction and wear has drastically increased during the last five decades, many technical solutions are still carried out ?following trial and error?.
Selection of the best material and the optimal topography in combination with the desired physical and chemical properties requires a systematic approach and a deep understanding of the acting mechanisms. Thus friction, wear, and wear protection are interdisciplinary fields which bring together scientists from the engineering, natural, biological and medical sciences.
This book is an indispensable source for everybody who needs to solve the problems of friction and wear on materials.
About the author
Alfons Fischer heads the institute of product engineering at the University Duisburg-Essen.
Kirsten Bobzin studied mechanical engineering at RWTH Aachen University, where she gained her doctorate in 1999. She then worked as a senior engineer at the Materials Science Institute of RWTH Aachen University, becoming Head of the Surface Engineering Institute in 2005. She won the Borchers Award of RWTH Aachen University in 2001, is and evaluator for the DFG for Collaborative Research Centers, is chairman of the board of both the GTS and EFDS, and has sat on the organizing committees of several international conferences. With over 200 scientific publications in national and international journals to her name, Professor Bobzin's research interests include surface engineering, tribology, corrosion, and materials science.
