Scuffing: Material Phenomena, Interfacial Effects, and Mitigating Practices

Scuffing is a catastrophic surface failure mode of surfaces in lubricated sliding interfaces, characterized by sudden increases in friction, interfacial temperature, vibration, and noise. Despite decades of study, its underlying mechanisms remain incompletely resolved due to the complex interplay of adhesion, thermal effects, tribochemistry, plastic deformation, and lubricant failure. This review consolidates current understanding of scuffing through an interdisciplinary lens, examining key contributing factors including material adhesion, flash temperatures, surface roughness and directionality, lubricant degradation and desorption, tribochemical film dynamics, and stick–slip behavior. By integrating theoretical, computational, and experimental perspectives, this work surveys proposed scuffing criteria, failure precursors, and mitigation strategies. Scuffing mechanics modeling was one of the foci of Professor Johnson’s work; this paper follows his footprint toward the understanding, modeling, and prevention of scuffing in high-performance tribological systems. Graphical Abstract