UNIVERSITI TEKNIKAL

MALAYSIA MELAKA MALAYSIA MELAKA

No. Dokumen:
SB/MTU/T1/DMCU1021/2
No. Isu./Tarikh:
4/06-07-2009
EXPERIMENTAL METHOD
Coefficient Of Static Friction (COF)
No. Semakan/Tarikh:
3/09-09-2009
Jum. Mukasurat
5
OBJECTIVE
Investigation of coefficient of static friction (COF), .s
subjected to different type of surface
material and different angle of COF, .s..
LEARNING OUTCOME
At the end of this laboratory session, students should be able to
1. Understand the concept of coefficient of static friction.
2. Understand the relationship between the surface roughness and the coefficient
of static
friction.
3. Compare
the COF on various surface measured data measured using different
measuring equipments.
4. Understand the effect of angle COF and its relation to COF
5. Present the measured data in form of report writing according to the normal t
echnical
report standard and make clear conclusions of the undertaken tasks.
THEORY
When a body with mass M
moves, a friction to the movement is known as friction force, Fm.
The friction force Fm between two surfaces is proportional to the normal force t
o the surface,
N where N is the weight of the body mass. Thus,

Fm.N

or Fm
..sN
(1)
Fm
Thus, ..
(2)
s
N

.s
is known as a coefficient of friction (COF).
Each material has different COF. For example, the COF of wood on wood surface wi
ll be
different with the COF of wood on steel surface.
EQUIPMENT
1. Aluminum plate, Steel plate
2. Aluminum box, Plastic box,
3. Adjustable angle platform
4. Load hanger
5. Load
6. Pulley and String
Figure 1 shows the arrangement of the apparatus with angle COF = 0o.
1
Figure 1 Arrangement of the apparatus with angle COF = 0o
PROCEDURE
A. Aluminum box on the aluminum surface
1. Put an aluminum box (M kg) with a load of 0.1 N on it on the aluminium surfac
e.
2. Hang a load hanger on the steel box with a string.
3. Put a load on the load hanger until the aluminum box starts to move on the su
rface.
Record the Mw and MB
where
Mw
= total mass of the box aluminum and the load on it.
MB
= total mass of the load hanger and the load on it.

4. Repeat step (1), (2) and (3) with different load on the aluminum box for 0.2
N,
0.3 N, 0.4 N and 0.5 N. Determine the coefficient of friction (COF) static, .S.
B.
Aluminum box on the steel surface.
1.
Use the same method as in part A but use the steel surface instead of aluminum
surface.
2.
Find the coefficient of friction (COF) static, .S for the aluminum box on the st
eel
surface.
C.
Plastic box on the steel surface
1.
Use the same method as in part A but use the plastic box instead of aluminum
box.
2.
Find the coefficient of friction (COF) static, .S for the plastic box on the ste
el
surface.
D.
Effect of an angle on friction
1. Repeat A, B and C by adjusting the angle of the beam at 15o and 30o.
2. Find the coefficient of friction (COF) static, .S
for all specimens at 15o and 30o.
2
EXPERIMENT DATA
Section A
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 1: Aluminum box s on aluminum surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Section B
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 2: Aluminum box s on steel surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Section C
Plastic box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 3: Plastic box s on steel surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
3
Section D
Angle of beam = 15o
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 4: Aluminum box on aluminum surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 5: Aluminum box on steel surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 6: Plastic box on steel surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
4
Angle of beam = 30o
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 7: Aluminum box on aluminum surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Aluminum box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 8: Aluminum box on steel surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
Plastic box s mass =
Load hanger s weight =
Table 9: Plastic box on steel surface
Load
on
Mw (N) Load on load hanger (N) MB (N)
box
(N)
1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave. 1 2 3 Ave.
0.1
0.2
0.3
0.4
0.5
5
DISCUSSIONS
1. Plot Mw vs MB . Calculate .S for every cases.
2. State what can you observes from the values of COF from the experiments.
3. State the effects regarding on the type of materials to the values of COF.
4. State the main error that will affect the result from the experiments.
CONCLUSION
State your conclusion of the experiment.
REFERENCES
List at least 2 references for this report.