Skidding in angular contact ball bearings can significantly increase friction, wear and temperature, affecting bearing performance and service life. Despite its important impact, few studies have systematically investigated lubrication behavior under skidding conditions, where conventional lubricants often fail to provide stable low-friction operation. To address this issue, this study first calculated the critical skidding parameters of angular contact ball bearings using a quasi-static model. Then, experimental parameters of bearings with skidding and non-skidding were selected to study their tribological behaviors under lubrication with three different lubricants (base oil, commercial lubricant, and diketone lubricant). The study found that when the bearing had skidding behavior, the lowest friction coefficient and temperature rise (0.0008, 2.8℃) can be achieved only under lubrication with PAO=14(20%) (diketone lubricant). In addition, the bearings lubricated with diketone show excellent anti-wear performance and extremely short running-in period. The mechanism of the excellent tribological performance of diketone-based lubricants came from the synergistic effect of diketone molecular adsorption layer and chelation, which can reduce friction and temperature rise. These findings highlight the potential of diketone lubricants to improve bearing performance and durability under extreme operating conditions.

High-temperature solid lubricant coatings with decent lubrication performance are essential in critical processes of metal forming and aerospace. However, their preparation is formidably challenging due to the harsh working conditions. Here, we successfully developed a solid lubricant coating via a facile and eco-friendly approach by casting a homogeneous mixture of molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) as lubricants, silicate as the binder, and water as the solvent onto a titanium alloy substrate. This solid lubricant coating exhibited excellent and stable tribological properties with a very low coefficient of friction (COF) of 0.080 at 1,000 °C, yet in an open-air atmosphere. This superior lubrication behavior is attributed to the synergistic effect between the base lubricants h-BN and MoS₂, contributing to the formation of a coating for both lubrication and lubricant protection against oxidation at 1,000 °C in an open-air environment. This work largely extends the operation temperature range of the crucial lubricant MoS₂ in an open-air atmosphere and further sheds valuable light on the design of high-temperature solid lubricants via the synergistic effect between base lubricants.

Hydrated ions can achieve exceptional hydration lubrication through their adsorption onto oppositely charged surfaces. Similarly, the charge characteristics of polyelectrolytes are expected to significantly impact the hydration lubrication performance of polyelectrolyte-modified materials through the adsorption of counterions with surrounding hydration layers of different strength. To verify this hypothesis, a comprehensive polyelectrolyte-embedded modification on ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) employing polyanionic, polyzwitterionic, and polycationic brushes was performed for the construction of modified materials with diverse surface charge characteristics. Subsequently, the polyelectrolyte-modified UHMWPE were subjected to systematic investigations to understand the effect of polyelectrolyte charges on the surface hydration and lubrication performance under varying electrolyte conditions, including concentration and types of counterions. All polyelectrolyte-modified UHMWPE displayed more effective hydration lubrication with increasing ion concentrations, showcasing the contribution of hydrated counterions in the load-bearing and friction reduction of charged polyelectrolytes. A vertical comparison among different polyelectrolytes revealed that, polyanionic poly(3-sulfopropyl methacrylate potassium) (PSPMK), characteristic of the highest surface charge density, exhibited the strongest hydration lubrication that enables macroscale superlubricity. At the same time, a horizontal comparison of varying counterions in the solutions within each polyelectrolyte-modified UHMWPE displayed a sequence of hydration lubrication performance with more strongly hydrated ions resulting in lower friction and wear. These findings elucidate the impact of polyelectrolyte charge characteristics on hydration lubrication, highlighting the combined influence of ion adsorption density, determined by intrinsic surface potential, and the ionic hydration strength of surrounding counterions in determining the overall hydration lubrication performance of modified UHMWPE.

The mixed lubricant prepared by mixing 1-(4-ethylphenyl)-nonane-1,3-dione (0206) and chelate (0206-Fe) in a ratio of 4:6 had better tribological properties than 0206. In this study, it was found that the mixed lubricant prepared by mixing alkane lubricants with 0206-Fe(60%) at a ratio of 2:8 can not only achieve superlubricity, but also reduce the wear scar diameter (WSD) of the friction pairs. The mixed solution prepared by the four polar solutions with 0206-Fe(60%) cannot achieve superlubricity. The results of surface analysis and molecular dynamics (MD) simulation showed that the four polar molecules were preferentially adsorbed on the metal surface, occupying the diketone adsorption sites, and the adsorption layer formed by them cannot produce synergistic lubrication with the chelates.

1,2,3-TrI [Cis-9-Hexadecenoyl](GTM) is a common oiliness additive. In this paper, the anti-wear property of GTM was found poor when it was directly used as lubricating oil for titanium alloy. However, when it was added to water and made into oil-in-water (OW) emulsion, it could play an effective role. The wear volume of titanium alloy sample lubricated by the emulsion was reduced by 75% compared to that lubricated by pure oil. It was difficult to fully uncover the underlying mechanism of these phenomena by experimental methods alone. With the help of molecular simulation method, the changes of GTM in chemical activity and adsorption capacity caused by water medium were revealed on atomic scale. The adsorption energies between GTM and titanium alloy under different temperature were quantitatively calculated. The superior anti-wear performance of the emulsions was related to following three aspects: (1) Water medium enhanced the adsorption capacity of GTM; (2) water medium changed the composition of lubrication film; and (3) the adsorption film in the water medium was less affected by temperature. Based on above results, an approach to predict tribological properties of oiliness additive was proposed. Using this method, the lubrication effects of several oiliness additives were successfully predicted.

1-(4-ethylphenyl)-nonane-1,3-dione (0206) is an oil-soluble liquid molecule with rod-like structure. In this study, the chelate (0206-Fe) with octahedral structure was prepared by the reaction of ferric chloride and 1,3-diketone. The experimental results show that when using 0206 and a mixed solution containing 60% 0206-Fe and 40% 0206 (0206-Fe(60%)) as lubricants of the steel friction pairs, superlubricity can be achieved (0.007, 0.006). But their wear scar diameters (WSD) were very large (532 μm, 370 μm), which resulted in the pressure of only 44.3 and 61.8 MPa in the contact areas of the friction pairs. When 0206-Fe(60%) was mixed with PAO6, it was found that the friction coefficient (COF) decreased with increase of 0206-Fe(60%) in the solution. When the ratio of 0206-Fe(60%) to PAO6 was 8:2 (PAO6(20%)), it exhibited better comprehensive tribological properties (232.3 MPa). Subsequent studies have shown that reducing the viscosity of the base oil in the mixed solution helped to reduce COF and increased WSD. Considering the COF, contact pressure, and running-in time, it was found that the mixed lubricant (Oil3(20%)) prepared by the base oil with a viscosity of 19.7 mPa∙s (Oil3) and 0206-Fe(60%) exhibited the best tribological properties ( 0.007, 161.4 MPa, 3,100 s).

Superlubricity, the state of ultralow friction between two sliding surfaces, has become a frontier subject in tribology. Here, a state-of-the-art review of the phenomena and mechanisms of liquid superlubricity are presented based on our ten-year research, to unlock the secrets behind liquid superlubricity, a major approach to achieve superlubricity. An overview of the discovery of liquid superlubricity materials is presented from five different categories, including water and acid-based solutions, hydrated materials, ionic liquids (ILs), two-dimensional (2D) materials as lubricant additives, and oil-based lubricants, to show the hydrodynamic and hydration contributions to liquid superlubricity. The review also discusses four methods to further expand superlubricity by solving the challenge of lubricants that have a high load-carrying capacity with a low shear resistance, including enhancing the hydration contribution by strengthening the hydration strength of lubricants, designing friction surfaces with higher negative surface charge densities, simultaneously combining hydration and hydrodynamic contribution, and using 2D materials (e.g., graphene and black phosphorus) to separate the contact of asperities. Furthermore, uniform mechanisms of liquid superlubricity have been summarized for different liquid lubricants at the boundary, mixed, and hydrodynamic lubrication regimes. To the best of our knowledge, almost all the immense progresses of the exciting topic, superlubricity, since the first theoretical prediction in the early 1990s, focus on uniform superlubricity mechanisms. This review aims to guide the research direction of liquid superlubricity in the future and to further expand liquid superlubricity, whether in a theoretical research or engineering applications, ultimately enabling a sustainable state of ultra-low friction and ultra-low wear as well as transformative improvements in the efficiency of mechanical systems and human bodies.

Hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H) films are capable of providing excellent superlubricating properties, which have great potential serving as self-lubricating protective layer for mechanical systems in extreme working conditions. However, it is still a huge challenge to develop a-C:H films capable of achieving robust superlubricity state in vacuum. The main obstacle derives from the lack of knowledge on the influencing mechanism of deposition parameters on the films bonding structure and its relation to their self-lubrication performance. Aiming at finding the optimized deposition energy and revealing its influencing mechanism on superlubricity, a series of highly-hydrogenated a-C:H films were synthesized with appropriate ion energy, and systematic tribological experiments and structural characterization were conducted. The results highlight the pivotal role of ion energy on film composition, nanoclustering structure, and bonding state, which determine mechanical properties of highly-hydrogenated a-C:H films and surface passivation ability and hence their superlubricity performance in vacuum. The optimized superlubricity performance with the lowest friction coefficient of 0.006 coupled with the lowest wear rate emerges when the carbon ion energy is just beyond the penetration threshold of subplantation. The combined growth process of surface chemisorption and subsurface implantation is the key for a-C:H films to acquire stiff nanoclustering network and high volume of hydrogen incorporation, which enables a robust near-frictionless sliding surface. These findings can provide a guidance towards a more effective manipulation of self-lubricating a-C:H films for space application.

High-temperature solid lubricants play a significant role in the hot metal forming process. However, preparing high-temperature solid lubricant is formidably challenging due to the stern working conditions. Here we successfully develop a new type of eco-friendly high-temperature graphite-based solid lubricant by using amorphous silica dioxide, aluminum dihydrogen phosphate, and solid lubricant graphite. The solid lubricating coating exhibits excellent tribological properties with a very low friction coefficient and good wear protection for workpiece at high temperature under the air atmosphere. An array of analytical techniques reveals the existence of solid lubricant graphite in the lubricating coating after the high-temperature friction test. A synergistic effect between the protective surface film and the solid lubricant graphite is proposed to account for such superior lubricating performance. This work highlights the synergistic effect between the protection layer and the lubricant graphite and further provides the insight in designing the high-temperature solid lubricant.