Construction of a tribometer for tests with biolubricants

Abstract

The tribometer is a device used in the tribology, the science that studies the lubrication in general. The mechanical system of tribometer comprises basically in a relative motion between two surfaces, which are evaluated in terms of the measurement of the frictional force between them. The tribometer proposed in this work, has a simple concept that consists of a recipient, which may contain different quantities of lubricating oil and slides in a reciprocating mode in contact with a specimen attached to a force sensor. During the tests, the speed of sliding of the recipient and the contact force between the samples can be changed, allowing the accomplishment of large variety of tests. Besides, a large number of cycles can be done in order to evaluate the wear of materials. The force sensor uses strain gauges, which depending on its configuration, allows the measurement of a wide range of magnitude of normal forces and friction. This equipment will be used in the characterization of oils from cerrado that have not been evaluated in terms of lubrication.