This paper reports research on the frictional behavior of a textured surface against several materials under dry and lubricated conditions, and this is aimed to provide design guidelines on the surface texturing for wide-ranging industrial applications. Experiments were performed on a tribo-tester with the facility of simulating A ball-on-plate model in reciprocating motion under dry, oil-lubricated, and water-lubricated conditions. To study the frictional behavior of textured SiC against various materials, three types of ball-bearing –elements, 52100 steel, silicon nitride (Si₃N₄), and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), were used. Friction and wear performance of an un-textured surface and two types of widely used micro-scale texture surfaces, grooves and circular dimples, were examined and compared. The results demonstrated that the effect of surface textures on friction and wear performance is influenced by texture parameters and the materials of friction pairs. The circular-dimple texture and the groove texture, with certain texture parameters, played a positive role in improving friction and wear performance under specific operating conditions used in this research for SiC–steel and SiC–Si₃N₄ friction pairs; however, there was no friction and wear improvement for the textured SiC–PTFE friction pair. The results of this study offer an understanding and a knowledge base to enhance the performance of bearing elements in complex interacting systems.

Processing texture on contact surfaces can improve the friction performance of mechanical comments. In this research, micro-dimple textures with various parameter were processed on a steel ball’s surface with a picosecond laser. Then, the EHL (elastohydrodynamic lubrication) oil film thickness was measured on an optical ball-on-disc tribometer subjected to pure sliding conditions. The effects of sliding velocity, load, dimple location and dimple depth on the film thickness were analyzed. The results showed that the dimple affected the pressure distribution in the contact area, which in turn changed the distribution of the local film thickness. An increase in the local film thickness occurred between the dimple and outlet of the contact region, while a decrease in the film thickness formed from the dimple to the entrance of the contact area and both sides of the dimple’s edge. Velocity and applied loads affected the film thickness distribution as well. As the sliding velocity increased, the film thickness increasing region enlarged, while the film thickness-decreasing area shrank. The increase in load resulted in a negative effect on the increase in film thickness. This study will provide a reference for point-contact designs with low friction conditions.