Under macroscopic pin-on-disk testing the sliding friction coefficient of Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) was investigated over a temperature range of approximately 200 - 400 K. This study examines the nature of the temperature dependence by testing PTFE pins at varying temperature and humidity on a linear reciprocating pin-on-disk tribometer. The friction coefficient increased monotonically with decreasing temperature from mu = 0.075to mu = 0.210 in a manner consistent with thermal activation; it deviated from this trend only during phase and glass transitions in the PTFE and temperatures below the frost-points for the respective environments.

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Tribology Letters
27 (2007) pp. 323-328