Friction
Whenever the surface of a body slides over that of another, each body exerts a force of friction on the
other, parallel to the surfaces. The force of friction on each body is in a direction opposite to its motion
relative to the other body.
The force of friction comes into action only when there is a relative motion between the two contact
surfaces or when an attempt is made to have it.
Types of Friction
Static Friction (fs):- The force of friction which comes into play between two bodies before one
body actually start moving over the other body ( at rest )is called Static friction.
Limiting Friction (fL or fS max) :- The maximum force of static friction which comes into play when
a body just starts moving over these surface of another body is called limiting friction.
Kinetic Friction ( fK ) :- The force of friction which comes into play when a body is in a state of
steady motion over the surface of another body is called kinetic or dynamic friction.
Variation of the force of friction with the applied force:-
When one body is laying over the surface of another without moving, static friction is a self-adjusting
force. When no force is applied to a body in order to move it, the frictional force is also zero. When
we apply force, the frictional force increases with the applied force.
Until the applied force is less than the limiting frictional force, this happens. The maximum value of
static friction is obtained when that body surpasses the force of static friction and about to come in
motion, which is known as limiting friction. Once the motion has begun the force of friction
decreases a smaller applied force is now necessary on a body to maintain uniform motion. When body
is in motion the force of friction is known as kinetic friction opposing the actual relative motion of a
body.
Graph shows that the static friction is a self adjusting force . kinetic friction is always less than the
limiting friction.
(fL or fS max) > ( fK ) .