Micro CNC surface texturing on polyoxymethylene (POM) and its tribological performance in lubricated sliding

The effect of surface texturing on the friction of polyoxymethylene was investigated in terms of surface texturing density. Surface texture was machined using CNC machining. Five different surface texturing densities were machined and tested in a pin-on-disk sliding configuration. Bearing steel was used as a mating material on polyoxymethylene (POM). Sliding speed and nominal contact pressure were 0.1 m/s and 1.35 MPa, respectively. Sliding distance was 1 km, and the lubricant was SAE 5W-30 oil. The lowest coefficient of friction was obtained with a 10% texturing density, where the reduction in friction was about 50% of that of the non-textured POM.