A study of fiber-capstan friction. 2. Stick–slip phenomena

Data taken for the friction of nylon fiber (monofilament fishing line) rubbing on spinning aluminum and nylon capstans (cylinders) is used to develop a model for stick–slip sliding in these systems. Slip is shown to correspond to ‘pseudo’ under-damped or over-damped oscillation. Stick is shown to correspond to deformation of polymers when they are subjected to intermittent loading. The whole process may be represented by a graph of (real contact area/apparent contact area) vs. time. The model fits the experimental data and explains the influence of system variables on both stick–slip sliding and the critical speed.