


“We used molecular simulations on Expanse to see what happens at the nanoscale when you put two solids in contact for some time and then start sliding,” said Lucas Frerot, a postdoctoral scholar at Johns Hopkins.

The simulations from Expanse revealed that the junctions between the “mountains” of the original rough surfaces controlled what is termed “frictional aging” – the increase of friction when two surfaces in contact are at rest.

To illustrate this long-studied fundamental question, a team of engineering scholars from Johns Hopkins University used the Expanse supercomputer at the San Diego Supercomputer Center at UC San Diego to create simulations to model the friction between two rough surfaces coated with fatty acids. The combined effect of fatty acid molecules and nanoscale roughness explain frictional aging, as was highlighted by cutting-edge research combining friction experiments, molecular simulations and a theoretical model. Flashing forward a few centuries, researchers have made progress but still have more to learn about how and why friction exists between seemingly smooth surfaces. Da Vinci was aiming to build a helicopter (which never flew) when he created what some posit as the first ball bearing to decrease the friction of a rotating axis. MaAlthough Leonardo Da Vinci achieved fame by painting “The Mona Lisa,” perhaps one of his most significant contributions to society was his work between 14 on a ball bearing. Since 1987 - Covering the Fastest Computers in the World and the People Who Run Them
