Tribology Research and Development

UDRI’s tribology research group is located in the Materials Directorate at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. The focus of our group is the improvement of the state of the art of lubricants and tribological coatings. Our goal is to develop novel tribological materials that are effective in the harsh environments experienced by advanced aerospace systems.

We have expertise with thin film growth techniques such as pulsed laser deposition and magnetron sputtering. Thin film characterization via techniques such as x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), nano-indentation, profilometry, and scratch testing is routine for our group. Tribological testing is carried out using a variety of test equipment that we have developed for testing at high temperature, at high and low humidity, and under vacuum conditions.

To discuss possible future collaborations with our tribology research group, please contact Dr. Peter John. Pete has over 14 years of experience working in the area of tribology and over 22 years of experience working with surface analysis techniques.