Self-dispersed crumpled graphene balls in oil for friction and wear reduction

Abstract

Aggregation is a major problem for ultrafine particle additives in lubricant oil because it reduces the effective particle concentrations, prevents particles from entering the contact area of working surfaces, and leads to unstable tribological performance. Molecular ligands can help the particles to disperse, but they tend to degrade under the harsh tribological conditions. Therefore, self-dispersed particles without the need for surfactant are highly desirable. We report here, for the first time to our knowledge, such type of ultrafine particles made of crumpled, paper-ball–like graphene, which indeed can self-disperse in lubricant oil, and exhibit stable and superior tribological performances.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jan 25, 2016
Source ID
10.1073/pnas.1520994113

Entities

People

  • Andrew R. Koltonow
  • Hee Dong Jang
  • Jiaxing Huang
  • Qian Wang
  • Xingliang He
  • Xuan Dou
  • Yip-wah Chung

Organizations

  • Northwestern University
  • Office of Naval Research

Tags

Readers

  • Educational Psychology
  • Nanocomposite Materials Science
  • Tribology (the study of the boundary interaction between sliding surfaces, lubrication, wear and friction).

Technology Areas

  • Microelectronics