Tungsten dichalcogenide lubricant nanoadditives for demanding applications

Niste, Vlad and Ratoi, Monica (2016) Tungsten dichalcogenide lubricant nanoadditives for demanding applications. Materials Today Communications, 8, 1-20. (doi:10.1016/j.mtcomm.2016.04.015).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Tungsten dichalcogenides such as WS2 and WSe2 have remarkable friction reducing properties in tribological applications due to their layered structure which exfoliates easily under shear. 2H-WS2 nanoparticles (NPs) have recently been shown to possess excellent antiwear properties in high temperature applications due to their ability to react with the steel substrate and generate a chemical tribofilm with very good mechanical properties. Moreover, 2H-WS2 sheets can adhere to the chemical tribofilm and thus also reduce boundary friction.

This study investigated the tribological properties of tungsten dichalcogenide NPs with different morphologies (IF and 2H) in high temperature, high pressure test conditions, the aim being to identify their mechanism of action and the differences in their performance. Tribological tests and analysis of tribofilms on the wear tracks revealed that the three additives show a similar mechanism of action based on their chemical reaction with the wear track. However, 2H-WS2 NPs have superior friction reducing and antiwear properties due to their increased reactivity, resulting in a tribofilm that grows faster, thicker, more uniform and richer in tungsten compounds.

Text

Revised Manuscript Tungsten dichalcogenide lubricant nanoadditives-Final.docx - Accepted Manuscript

Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives.

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