2009 ASME/STLE International Joint Tribology Conference

Mechanical Science and Engineering professor Andreas Polycarpou, who served as chairperson of the organizing committee, reports that this year’s international conference was attended by participants from over 29 countries—representing the tribology community’s top researchers from academia, industry, research laboratories and government. The conference is sponsored jointly by the Tribology Division of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers.

The conference, which took place from Oct. 19-21 in Memphis, Tennessee, provided a forum for the exchange of new ideas and technology in many areas, with technical sessions on nanotribology, biotribology, engineered surfaces, lubricants and additives, hydrodynamic lubrication and fluid bearings, elastohydrodynamic lubrication, machine component tribology, contact mechanics, magnetic storage tribology and manufacturing/metalworking tribology.

According to Polycarpou, this year’s conference attracted an excellent group of graduate students and their poster presentations were among the main attractions. Five of Polycarpou’s current students and two of his former students participated; his Ph.D. student Seung Min Yeo won 3^rd place for his poster on “Contact Surface Characterization of Capacitive RF MEMS Switches with Cycling.” The wind turbine tribology session was also of special interest this year, attracting many participants working on alternative energy.

Polycarpou, an ASME Fellow, has been an active member of the Tribology Division for a number of years. His commitment to this international conference spanned 9 years. Although the 2009 conference has been in the planning for only 2 years, the conference planning committee is made up of 9 members who each serve 9 years and rotate up to become chair in their 9^th year. He has also served as chair of the Tribology Division and is an active member of the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers, which jointly sponsored the conference.