smart surfaces
Photo: austechexpo.com.au

Smart Surfaces

Techniques such as micro-machining, photo-etching, and laser surface texturing have lead to the creation of surfaces which are tailored to provide unique characteristics based on their surface topography. These surfaces may be machined with lubricant micro-reservoirs, hydrodynamic enhancement cavities, micro-barbs for drug delivery, as well as other features meant to augment abrasion or adhesion.

The PFTL currently performs experiments and modeling with in order to explore the benefits of surface texturing in a number of different sliding contacts and lubricant media. This is with the goal of optimizing texture design while elucidating enhancement mechanics.

 

Specific Projects