Burnishing (metal)

High school (ages 12+)
Making & Design

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/burnishing-metal

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the surface engineering outcome?Reduces surface roughness, introduces compressive residual stresses, and increases surface hardness
2. What is the functional benefits?Significantly lowers friction, enhances wear resistance, and improves fatigue life of components
3. What is burnishing?Burnishing is a way to smooth and shine metal by rubbing it with a harder tool, like a steel roller or ball, so the surface becomes very smooth and shiny.
4. How does burnishing make metal shiny?When the hard tool presses on the metal, the tiny bumps on the surface flow into the valleys, creating a flat, reflective finish that looks very shiny.

Asperities: Microscopic peaks and irregularities on a metal surface.
Compressive Residual Stresses: Internal stresses within a material that push its particles together, enhancing fatigue resistance.
Coefficient of Friction: A dimensionless number indicating the ratio of the frictional force to the normal force between two surfaces.