Macroscale Superdurable Superlubricity Achieved in Lubricant Oil via Operando Tribochemical Formation of Fullerene-Like Carbon

Authors

Jingjie Pan, Jilin University
Xinxin Gao, Jilin University
Chang Liu, Jilin UniversityFollow
Kan Zhang, Jilin UniversityFollow
Weitao Zheng, Jilin University
Changfeng Chen, University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

11-16-2022

Publication Title

Cell Reports Physical Science

Volume

3

Issue

11

First page number:

1

Last page number:

18

Abstract

Friction and wear are ubiquitous in moving mechanical assemblies, causing energy and equipment loss and producing harmful emissions. Mitigation efforts have long relied on oil-based lubricants, but challenges remain in achieving concurrent ultralow friction and wear without oil additives. Here, we demonstrate that a dual-phase TiB2-MoS2 film lubricated by oil without additives exhibits superdurable superlubricity characterized by a vanishingly small friction coefficient (0.007) and ultralow wear rate (10−9 mm3N−1m−1) maintained in lubricants over an unprecedentedly long sliding distance without performance deterioration. We identify a tribochemical route for the decomposition of oil molecules catalytically activated by the TiB2-MoS2 film, leading to operando formation of fullerene-like carbon that leads to diminished friction. First-principles calculations unveil strong stress responses of a TiB2 structural framework under wear strains, offering insights into the ultralow wear rate. These findings showcase a promising strategy to develop high-performance superlubricating materials that meet stringent conditions for demanding applications.

Keywords

superdurable; macroscale; superlubricity; ultralow wear; tribocatalysis

Disciplines

Astrophysics and Astronomy

File Format

PDF

File Size

4300 KB

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Repository Citation

Pan, J., Gao, X., Liu, C., Zhang, K., Zheng, W., Chen, C. (2022). Macroscale Superdurable Superlubricity Achieved in Lubricant Oil via Operando Tribochemical Formation of Fullerene-Like Carbon. Cell Reports Physical Science, 3(11), 1-18.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrp.2022.101130