  The phenomenon of corrugated surfaces is a known technical problem of
tribological systems; considerable work has been published in the past on the
aspect of rail corrugation of railway systems. Less known is a similar
phenomenon observed within the cylinder-piston system of advanced automotive
engines using aluminium cylinders. This paper investigates the condition
leading to cylinder corrugation in the piston/cylinder system. Material
investigations strongly indicate that heat in the contact is playing a major
role. Using basic analytical relationships from contact mechanics, the
condition required for the onset of such thermo-mechanical instabilities are
investigated. Using the concept of a critical velocity it is shown that such
instabilities can occur for a realistic set of parameters. A significant
technical key factor is the friction coefficient.
