The fuel consumption of a modern combustion engine is one of the most important purchase
criteria in contemporary society. Increasing oil prices and exhaust emissions taxes force the
automotive industry to continuously improve the vehicle engines. The fuel consumption is
closely related to the frictional losses of an engine. New material pairings or constructive
modifications of the piston group can reduce such losses. Another innovative concept to lower
the frictional forces is the micro-structuring of thermo-mechanically highly stressed surfaces.
Within an interdisciplinary research group sponsored by the German Research Foundation
scientists at the Leibniz Universität Hannover and Universität Kassel have been working
together to investigate this research topic. This final report presents their findings and
offers scope for further discussion.
