Development of a statistical-parameter based surface-model for the simulation of variation of surface roughness with contact pressure

Analysis of surface deformation is of particular significance to research in surface engineering, but previous surface models, however, could not meet application-requirements in the elastic–plastic analysis of engineering components. A statistical FE surface model was, therefore, developed to simplify the analytical procedure. An “equivalent asperity”, which is a statistical representation of the surface, was used to determine the deformation of the surface: this enabled the computation of the surface roughness of a surface that had been subjected to compression. The computed roughness was compared to the measured data to validate the developed model. The result suggested that the model is sufficiently accurate for use in the prediction of the surface character of materials that have been subjected to interfacial pressure.