Material Brush Burns

Project

Purpose
I chose to do this topic because when I was taking down the play set in my backyard, I
took out a screw and found that it was hot. This started the idea to find out if the amount of heat
produced by friction varies depending on the surfaces that rub together.
Hypothesis
If different materials (wood, cloth, aluminum, copper, or plastic) are rubbed against a
sheet of copper metal at the same frequency of 100 rubs per minute, then the roughest surface
will produce the most heat as measured by an elevation in temperature (C).
Rationale
I want to measure heat produced by friction because I want to know what friction could
potentially cause with the heat produced by it. One example of what the heat produced by
friction can do that is helpful is when a person rubs their hands together when they are cold,
when the movement occurs with friction between them the molecules vibrate and transfer into
heat energy. This is how the hands get warm. There also bad things that can occur because of
friction. One example is in a machine. The heat caused by friction could do disastrous damage
to it. This is the reason that the heat produced by friction is good or bad in some situations. This
is why I chose to experiment on the heat produced by friction so that I could know how it is
important in our modern world today.

Alexander Gassis
Mrs. Banks
5 December 2016
Friction is the force that works against two objects rubbing against each other. When
friction occurs heat is produced. Friction was first somewhat understood in ancient Egypt.
The first known tribologist (a person that studies the science of interacting surfaces) was
an ancient Egyptian in about 2300 b. c. (Meyers 1). He poured water on sand in the path of a
large statue that was being moved (Meyers 1). By doing this he made the friction acting between
the wooden statue and the sand decrease. He did not yet understand fully what was occurring,
but he was decreasing friction. Another person who contributed to the early understanding of
friction was Leonardo Da Vinci who used a lot of experiments to define friction. Another person
is the French physicist Guillame Amontons (1663-1705). Amontons discovered another way to
reduce friction, similar to the ancient Egyptian, between different metals rubbing against each
other but with pork fat (Meyer 6). Even early on, people understood the need to reduce friction.
Today it is known that friction is the force that always works against movement
(Friction-Real-life Applications). In other words, friction is similar to one person pushing
another back when they are trying to move forward. The backward force causes them to move
more slowly. Friction is present every time things touch and/or rub against each other. There are
two different types of friction: kinetic and static. Kinetic friction is when two objects touch and
move against each other (Physics for Kids-Friction). Static friction is when two objects are
touching each other but not moving (Physics for Kids-Friction).

When friction occurs, something is always lost. But energy cannot be destroyed only
change its form. When movement occurs with friction, the molecules vibrate changing kinetic
energy into heat energy, making the temperature rise (Friction-Real-life Applications). One
example is when a person rubs their hands together to warm them up (Bautista). This rubbing
causes friction between the surfaces of the hands which causes heat. Friction is necessary
because it is needed to do many things like applying the brakes to stop the car from moving
(Rader). But for a machine with moving metal parts, the heat produced by friction could damage
the machine (Friction-Real-life Applications). Friction can vary though. When there is a
liquid on one of the surfaces, the friction acting between the two surfaces is lower than if it was
dry. For example a piston moving inside a car engine stops working when there is no oil to
reduce friction.
In conclusion, friction is as important to mankind as it is not. Without it people would
always be moving and unable to stop. Cars would not be able to get a good enough grip on the
road to move, and nobody would be able to accomplish anything.

Works Cited
Friction-Real-life Applications. Science Clarified. Real-life Chemistry Vol 3-Physics Vol 1.
Advameg, Inc. 2016. 18 Sept 2016.
Rader, Andrew. Friction. Raders Physics 4 Kids. Andrew Rader Studios. 1997. 18 Sept 2016
Bautista, Melissa. Material Friction. Education.com. 2006. 18 Sept 2016.
Physics for Kids-Friction.Ducksters. Technology Solutions, Inc. 1 September 2016.
Physics for kids- Science of Heat. Ducksters. Technology Solutions, Inc. 1 September 2016.
18 September 2016.
Meyer, E. et al. Nanoscience: Friction and Rheology on the Nanometer Scale. River Edge:
World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., 1998.

Alexander Gassis
Mrs. Banks
9 September 2016
Procedure
1. Gather materials.
a. Copper sheet metal
b. Aluminum foil
c. Cotton fabric from an old t-shirt
d. Styrofoam as a source of plastic
e. Plywood square
f. Timer
g. IR thermometer
2. Obtain the Infrared (IR) thermometer. Calibrate the IR thermometer to determine the
accuracy of its measurements.
a. Place ice and a small amount of liquid water in a small bowl.
b. Use the light guide to practice aiming the thermometer at the ice. Depress
c.
d.
e.
f.

measurement button while aiming the thermometer at the ice surface.

Record the temperature in C.
Repeat the measurement 4 more times and record all measurements in journal.
Place a pot of liquid water on the stove and heat until it is clearly boiling.
Use the light guide to practice aiming the thermometer at the boiling water
surface. Depress measurement button while aiming the IR thermometer at the

surface of the boiling water.

g. Record the temperature in C.
h. Repeat the measurement 4 more times and record all measurements in journal.
i. Compare the known freezing point of water, 0C, and boiling point of water,
100C, to the measurements made with the IR thermometer. Calculate the percent
error for freezing point of water and boiling point of water: %error = (Tmeasured
Tknown)/Tknown x 100.
j. Record calculation and work in journal.
3. Record temperature using IR thermometer of surface of copper metal before experiment
begins. Repeat measurement two more times and record in project journal.

4. Obtain timer and set it for 1 minute. When the timer is started, rub the two sheets of
copper together at 100 rubs per minute. One rub is rubbing one material forward and
backward against the other.
5. When 1 minute is up, immediately remove the material on top and measure the
temperature of the center of the rubbed copper surface with the IR thermometer in C.
Quickly, take two more measurements in the same location and record in project journal.
6. Let the copper sheet cool for at least five minutes until temperature of surface is at
original temperature.
7. Repeat steps 3-6 for each substance a total of 5 times.

Discussion
The experiments purpose was to find out if the heat produced by friction varied depending on
the materials being used. The results of the experiment were against the hypothesis. This is
because the copper sheet and the aluminum produced higher temperatures than the rougher
materials. One of the factors that may have affected the data was the force exerted in rubbing the
materials. During this experiment there was one error. The original idea included using
styrofoam but throughout the experiment the styrofoam broke while being rubbed. This led to
the limiting of the materials used for this experiment. Another problem that appeared was that
the IR thermometer did not measure low temperatures well.
In the background research it is explained that friction produces heat. The background
research explains that when friction occurs heat is produced. This is proven by the data in the

experiment because every material that was rubbed produced a higher temperature than before
the experiment.
This also appears to be true in real life. One example of that is when a person rubs their
hands together when they are cold. When the hands move in opposite directions against each
other friction is produced. When friction occurs the energy is transferred into heat energy
because energy cannot be created or destroyed, only change form. The heat warms the person
up. Another example of how friction relates to real life is in a car. When the engine is running
friction is occurring, producing heat. It is a good example of how the heat produced by friction
can be dangerous. That is why there is cooling liquid to prevent the car from combusting.
The experiment could have been improved by using an IR thermometer that could
measure low temperatures better. Another way to improve the experiment would be to make sure
that the materials were ready and that they were the best choice for the experiment. Possible
ideas for continuing research of the project would be to learn if there is a way to prevent the cars
from combusting because of the heat produced by friction.