Thermal relaxation effects in rapid sliding contact with friction

Summary. A rigid die slides at constant sub-critical speed on a homogeneous, isotropic linear coupled thermoelastic half-space. Friction exists, and a dynamic steady state of plane strain is considered. An exact integral transform solution for the related problem of moving surface traction is obtained, and asymptotic expressions valid when thermal relaxation is prominent are extracted.These are used to derive an analytic solution for the sliding problem, and formulas for contact zone size and location, and unilateral constraints imposed by non-tensile contact and non-positive frictional work rate. Expressions for three body wave speeds and a Rayleigh wave speed show, save for the rotational wave case, clear dependence on thermoelastic coupling and thermal relaxation.Calculations for 4340 steel show that the problem eigenvalue is similar to its isothermal counterpart for high sliding speeds, but that the average contact zone temperature increase is less pronounced than when classical Fourier heat conduction effects dominate. Calculations for a hypothetical material similar to steel show that increasing the thermal relaxation time can in effect suppress both the Rayleigh wave and second sound body wave.