Effects of abrasive particle size and tool surface irregularities on wear rates of work and tool in polishing processes

Abstract This study proposes a wear model to investigate the effects of abrasive particle size and tool surface irregularities on the wear rates of both work and tool in polishing processes. This model is derived on the basis of force equilibrium, principle of minimum potential energy, Johnson–Kendall–Roberts (JKR) contact theory, and probability statistics. The simulation results indicate that variations in both particle size and tool surface irregularities change the contact length between the tool and particle and between the particle and work, and consequently influence the wear rates of tool and work. In this study, a given adhesion at the particle interfaces, for example, it reveals that a large particle size leads to reductions in the wear rate ratio between tool and work. On the other hand, an increase in tool surface irregularities decreases the wear rate ratio between tool and work. The experimental results show that the qualitative trends of wear rate ratio versus particle size and tool surface irregularities can be well predicted by analytical analysis.