Friction Coefficients - Alloys and Metals

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Static Friction Coefficients

The friction coefficients considered below are for static friction cases where two solid surfaces in contact with each other are resisting relative lateral motion. It should be noted that there can be significant differences between static friction (typically higher) and kinetic (sliding) friction.

Amontons's Laws of Dry Friction

  • First Law: The force of friction is directly proportional to the applied load.
  • Second Law: The force of friction is independent of the apparent area of contact.
  • Third Law: Kinetic friction is independent of the sliding velocity.
Material Combinations Coefficient of Friction μs
Clean Lubricated
Material #1 Material #2 min. max. min. max.

Additional Resources

  1. Carbide Depot. (n.d.). Coefficient for static friction of steel. Retrieved from http://www.carbidedepot.com/formulas-frictioncoefficient.htm
  2. D.D. Fuller. Coefficients of Friction. Columbia. Paper.
  3. Ghosh, S., (2011, September 2). Typical coefficient of friction values for common materials [blog article]. mechGuru. Retrieved from https://mechguru.com/machine-design/typical-coefficient-of-friction-values-for-common-materials/
  4. M.A. Chowdhury, D.M. Nuruzzaman, M.L. Rahaman, A.H. Mia. Friction Coefficient of Different Material Pairs Under Different Normal Loads and Sliding Velocities. Bangladesh. 2012. Published in Vol 34 of Tribology in Industry.
  5. Tribonet. (2017, September 02). Friction coefficient tables in air and vacuum. Retrieved from https://www.tribonet.org/wiki/friction-coefficients-in-atmosphere-and-vacuum/