Real-time Analysis of Wear Microparticles by Microabrasion through BallCratering: Integration of Optical Capture, Force Calibration, andTribological Quantification
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46842/Keywords:
dry micro-wear, ball cratering, polycarbonate, wear scar, optical microscopy, abrasive wear, micro-ploughing,, third bodyAbstract
In this study, the evolution of the wear scar produced on a solid polycarbonate specimen during dry micro-abrasion
tests was investigated using the ball-cratering technique. The analysis was based on three videos recorded by optical
microscopy at 500× magnification, which made it possible to monitor the evolution of the crater during the test. The
evaluated specimen was 6 mm thick and 25 mm in diameter. The tests were performed under dry conditions at a
rotational speed of 200 rpm, with a normal load of 200 g, equivalent to 1.961 N, using a 25 mm-diameter AISI 52100
steel ball. Polycarbonate was selected because of its transparency, which enabled optical observation of the contact
zone and the resulting surface modification.
Time-resolved image sequences were extracted from the experimental videos at selected intervals. The visual
evidence showed that the wear scar developed progressively, beginning with the establishment of contact, followed by
central darkening, edge definition, and the accumulation or redistribution of particles. The observed morphology
suggests that micro-ploughing abrasion was the dominant wear mechanism, accompanied by the intermittent
participation of particles acting as a third body. The analysis of the force–time signal plots made it possible to identify
stable test runs. The crater volume showed a central value of 0.000245 mm³ for an average wear scar diameter of 0.5
mm, while the average coefficients of friction (COF) were 0.0702, 0.0640, and 0.0624.
Overall, the integration of optical images, force signals, COF measurements, and the geometric calculation of crater
volume allowed a more careful interpretation of the wear process, without relying solely on the final wear scar
diameter. This data also provide a useful basis for future numerical simulations at the micrometric scale.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Mitzi Matias Matias, Leonardo Martínez Marcelo, Minerva Teresa Chimal Behnumea, Tomas De la Mora Ramirez (Autor/a)
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