Wear Volume & Specific Wear Rate Calculator
Compute wear volume W and specific wear rate k [mm³/(N·m)] from BCRF / SDF / ASCII surface data, applied load, and sliding distance — both reported side-by-side.
Rotating
Reciprocating
Select a test method and specimen in Step 1 first.
Complete Step 2 first.
Apply leveling in Step 3 to proceed.
Complete Steps 2–4 first.
Complete the wear volume calculation in Step 5 to see results.
What is Specific Wear Rate?
Specific wear rate (k) quantifies how much material is removed per unit of sliding distance per unit of applied load. Its SI unit is m³/(N·m), often expressed as mm³/(N·m) for practical tribology. A lower k indicates a more wear-resistant material or lubricant combination. The relationship is: W = k · F · s, where W is wear volume (m³), F is normal load (N), and s is total sliding distance (m). Specific wear rate is the standard figure-of-merit for comparing coatings, base materials, and lubricants across different test conditions.
How Wear Volume is Measured
This calculator reads BCRF (Binary Contact Response Function) data files generated by tribometer software. The wear scar cross-section profile is integrated over the track length to obtain wear volume. For rotating configurations (ball-on-disk, cylinder-on-disk), the track circumference is used; for reciprocating geometries, the stroke length applies. The levelling step removes tilt and curvature artefacts before integration, ensuring that only material loss—not geometric distortion—is counted.