Abstract
Series of laboratory tests are crried out on the friction between steel and air-dried sands with a simple shear apparatus. The significance of factors on the frictional coefficient are examined with the use of the experimental design method by orthogonal array table. The influence of sand type (Fujigawa Sand, Fukushima Sand, Toyoura Sand and Glass Beads) and the surface roughness of steel (Rmax=1.5∼3 μm and 10∼15 μm) are found to be significant, while the effects of normal stress (98 kPa and 980 kPa) and mean grain size (0.55∼0.62 mm and 0.15∼0.19 mm) are of poor significance. The sliding displacement at the contact surface and the displacement due to shear deformation of sand mass were obtained distinctively. The shear deformation of sand mass was found to be unaffected by the surface roughness of the steel.
