Mechanism of friction reduction of unsaturated fatty acids as additives in diesel fuels

This paper investigates the effect of unsaturated fatty acid additives on the lubricating properties of a biodiesel,composed of a blend of fatty acid methyl esters(FAMEs)and a conventional diesel fuel.The presence of fatty acids as additives for biodiesel improves their lubricating properties at elevated temperature conditions.The formation of a protective lubricating tribochemical film on the steel contact surfaces has been evidenced.Elevated temperature conditions and possibly oxygen are needed to form this film that reduces friction and limits wear.Several analytical tools have revealed the insulating nature of the formed tribofilm and its chemical properties.Friction-induced reticulation is thought to play a major role in the growth of this insulating film.

Super-low friction of ta-C coating in presence of oleic acid

Friction tests have been carried out on bearing steel friction pairs coated with a-C:H and ta-C under lubricated conditions with 1-hexadecene and pure oleic acid,respectively.Main results show that ta-C leads to the super-low regime with oleic acid(friction coefficient below 0.01)and that a-C:H is quite well lubricated by 1-hexadecen.Surface analyses by coupling X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS)and secondary ion mass spectrometry(SIMS)have been carried out in the case of oleic acid with ta-C and a-C:H coatings.Results show that tribochemical reactions have occurred.OH groups terminate the ta-C surface whereas a-C:H is covered by a thin tribofilm and is terminated by oleic acid monolayers.The superlow regime in the case of ta-C is mainly attributed to the presence of the OH-termination.

Mechanism of superlubricity of a DLC/Si_(3)N_(4) contact in the presence of castor oil and other green lubricants

To meet the surging needs in energy efficiency and eco-friendly lubricants,a novel superlubricious technology using a vegetable oil and ceramic materials is proposed.By coupling different hydrogen-free amorphous carbon coatings with varying fraction of sp^(2) and sp^(3) hybridized carbon in presence of a commercially available silicon nitride bulk ceramic,castor oil provides superlubricity although the liquid vegetable oil film in the contact is only a few nanometres thick at most.Besides a partial liquid film possibly separating surfaces in contact,local tribochemical reactions between asperities are essential to maintain superlubricity at low speeds.High local pressure activates chemical degradation of castor oil generating graphitic/graphenic-like species on top of asperities,thus helping both the chemical polishing of surface and its chemical passivation by H and OH species.Particularly,the formation of the formation of–(CH_(2)–CH_(2))n–noligomers have been evidenced to have a major role in the friction reduction.Computer simulation unveils that formation of chemical degradation products of castor oil on friction surfaces are favoured by the quantity of sp^(2)-hybridized carbon atoms in the amorphous carbon structure.Hence,tuning sp^(2)-carbon content in hydrogen-free amorphous carbon,in particular,on the top layers of the coating,provides an alternative way to control superlubricity achieved with castor oil and other selected green lubricants.