Difference Between Sliding Friction and Rolling Friction

Table of Contents

Main Difference

The main difference between Sliding Friction and Rolling Friction is that Sliding Friction happens when one surface rubs against another surface, whereas Rolling Friction happens when a body rolls over another surface.

Sliding Friction vs. Rolling Friction

When two surfaces rub against each other, then sliding friction occurs; on the other hand, when one body rolls over another surface, then rolling friction occurs. Sliding friction usually happens because of linking between the size of microscopic bumps on surfaces; on the contrary, rolling friction generally happens because of distortion present in surfaces.

The sliding friction’s coefficient does not strappingly rest on external influences relatively it is affected by the small amount of available temperature and the texture of the surfaces; on the flip side, the rolling friction’s coefficient strongly rests on the radius of the object which is rolling, the depth to which the object drops, the roughness of the existing surface, and many other factors.

The sliding friction could be considered as the type of friction; on the flip side, rolling friction cannot be deliberated as the true type of friction; rather, it is a resistive force. Sliding friction usually acts as the external backhaul force laterally to the advocate area to stop or minimize the relative motion; on the flip side, rolling friction acts as a force that tries to stop or minimize the rolling motion of the object by producing the reverse torque.

In the modern time application, the sliding friction is replaced by the rolling friction between the shaft and the wheel by using ball bearings and these bearings are even present in the wheels of the bicycle and the wheel can cover more distance when it slides; on the contrary, the friction of rolling is considered much less than the sliding friction, and it is easier to roll a wheel rather than to slide it on the ground.

The example of sliding friction is when we drive a wooden block over a material floor, while the example of rolling friction is that the rolling of a wheel of a car on the asphalt.

Comparison Chart

Sliding Friction	Rolling Friction
Sliding friction is the type of friction that occurs when an object slide over another body.	Rolling friction is considered as the force which started to act when one body is rolled over another body.
When it Occurs
When two surfaces rub against each other	When one body rolls over another surface
Origin
Happens because of linking between the size of microscopic bumps on surfaces	Happens because of distortion present in surfaces
Dependence of Coefficient on External Factors
Coefficient does not strappingly rest on external influences relatively it is affected by the small amount of available temperature and the texture of the surfaces	Coefficient strongly rests on the radius of the object which is rolling, the depth to which the object drops, the roughness of the existing surface, and many other factors
Type of Friction
Could be considered as the type of friction	Cannot be considered as the true type of friction rather it is a resistive force
Type of Resistance
Acts as the external backhaul force laterally to the advocate area to stop or minimize the relative motion	Acts as a force which tries to stop or minimize the rolling motion of the object by producing the reverse torque
Magnitude of Resistance
The sliding friction is replaced by the rolling friction between the shaft and the wheel by using ball bearings, and these bearings are even present in the wheels of a bicycle, and the wheel can cover more distance when it slides	The friction of rolling is considered much less than the sliding friction, and it is easier to roll a wheel rather than to slide it on the ground
Examples
When we drive a wooden block over a material floor	The rolling of a wheel of a car on the asphalt

What is Sliding Friction?

The sliding friction is considered as the type of friction that occurs when one surface gets rubbed or slide over another surface. Sliding friction is a sign of having minimum projections on a surface, and whenever one surface rubs over another surface, these projections interlock and start to work to keep the objects in motion.

Many aspects that can affect sliding friction comprise the following; the original speed of either object, the amount of pressure on either object, the surface deformation of objects, the adhesion of the surface, the roughness/smoothness of the surface of the objects, the size of object, etc.

What is Rolling Friction?

The friction, which is considered as the type of resistance force, occurs when an object is rolling over another object’s surface, is known as rolling friction. The deformations which occur on the surface when rolling happens are the origin of rolling friction.

It is much easier to roll an object, and the rolling object is always faster than the sliding object. The example of rolling friction is the rolling of a wheel of a car on the asphalt.

There are many aspects that can disturb rolling friction such as Shape of the wheel, the type of surface on which the wheel is rolling, any movement of the surface or below the surface, original speed of the wheel, the diameter of the wheel, amount of pressure on the wheel, adhesion of the surface, any amount of sliding that occurs in addition to the rolling motion, deformation of the object or of surface, over inflation of tires, micro-sliding, the thickness of tread on tires, shape of tread on tires, material that wheel or ball is made of.

Some examples of objects that have rolling friction are truck tires, ball bearings, bike wheels, soccer ball, basketball, car tires, skateboard tires, railroad steel wheels, bowling ball, etc. An example of rolling friction from daily life is: Heavy-duty trucks develop greater gas range when step starts to garb on the tires because there is less rolling friction, allowing the truck to move more quickly with minimum resistance.

Key Differences

The frictional force occurs when the surface of one body slides over the surface of another body is called sliding friction, while the friction occurs when one object rolls over the other object are called rolling friction.

Sliding friction can be acknowledged as a kind of friction; on the flip side, rolling friction is not a type of friction; rather, it is resistive of force.

In sliding friction, to stop the relative motion, sliding friction acts as an external backhaul force in the contact area; on the other hand, in a rolling motion, a reverse torque is generated to stop the rolling motion.

Sliding friction is more difficult as an area of contact between objects is more; on the contrary, rolling friction is less difficult as an area in contact is lesser.

Sliding friction is greater than the rolling friction; on the flip side, rolling friction is deliberated as smaller friction than sliding friction.

In sliding friction, the irregularities of surfaces do not get enough time and get locked with each other like objects are already in motion, whereas in a rolling motion, the rolling movements of both objects do not allow the interlocking of irregularities.

Conclusion

The above discussion concludes that the sliding friction is the type of friction that occurs when the body rubs or slides against the other body, whereas rolling friction is the resistive force that occurs when one body rolls over another body.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pbXFn5yrnZ6Ysm%2FDyKSgaKucnrGqusZmnauhk6m2sLqMr6pmqp%2Bhuaq6xmadq6GTqbawuo4%3D