Performance of Bio-lubricants in Machine Contacts.

This project aims to follow on from the research that has been conducted by the Tribology group to date in Bio-lubricants and provide new discovery's and information and on the tribological (friction, wear and lubrication) performance of bio-lubricants in different machine contacts. This research fits into the "Living with Environmental Change" EPSRC research area, because the motivation to develop and use bio-lubricants in machine contacts is mainly due to environmental concerns of using and disposing of the traditional mineral oil lubricants which they are intended to replace.

A current objective is to conduct a literature review into the tribological performance of bio-lubricants to contribute towards a review paper. This will provide the student and the research group with a more comprehensive understanding of the field. From this a clearer focus of research and experiments will help define the work going forward and potential for other research projects in the field.

Another objective has been to characterise the performance of Environmentally Acceptable Lubricants (EALs) for use in stern tube bearings and to discover the cause of problems experienced in this application. Stern tube bearings are found on ocean going vessels and EALs are required for use in ships docking in US ports. However, these lubricants have presented problems with reliability and load carrying capacity.

The bio-lubricants market is expected to grow form around USD 2.47billion to USD 3.36billion between 2017 and 2022 [1]. Bio-lubricants are an increasingly relevant technology, due to their potential environmental benefits, such as bio-degradability, renewability and energy efficiency of the machines that they are applied in. Furthermore, they have shown great potential as viable replacements for mineral oil lubricants because they have demonstrated superior performance in terms of their low friction properties and viscosity stability. As such, it is important for the future of the research group and the wider University that there is an understanding of this growing field, which will likely become an increasingly large part of Tribology.

The impact of the Centre will be manifest itself in four ways; by the number and quality of skilled PhD graduates it produces, by the reach and significance of the research that is generated during their studies, by the contribution to the research base in tribology, and through the broader societal impact of improved machine efficiency and energy utilisation.

The number and quality of PhD graduates. iT-CDT plans, in the steady state, to graduate 12 PhD students per year. We expect these students to enter industry as research leaders or academia as RAs then lecturers. UK and EU industries are desperately short of PhD graduates, and they are in demand. We expect to have impact on UK industry with a stream of PhD graduates who will enter for example, the automotive sector (e.g. designing more fuel efficient engines), the rail sector (e.g. increasing network capacity and reducing cost through improved track and vehicle components), the oil industry (e.g. developing new lubricants for increased fuel efficiency), aerospace sector (e.g. tribology needs in jet engines), the power industries (e.g.developing and maintaining more efficient transmissions). PhD students may also commercialise technology or consultancy in the form of a spin-out activity. We have a track record of past PhD students achieving all these things. The iT-CDT plans to extend and broaden that record, will facilitate synergy across the discipline.

The transformative PhD research. During their studies, PhD students will be conducting research on an industry led project. These projects will also have elements of generic application therefore have wide impact. The students will be closely involved with both the sponsoring organisation and other industrial partners. This means that there will be a direct route for technology transfer.

Contribution to the Research Base in Tribology. The iT-CDT is a grouping of the two leading universities in tribology in the UK. It will form the largest critical mass of academics, RAs, and PhD students in the EU. A team of industrial partners will steer the research so that it is relevant and has real routes to impact. This platform will lead to a growth in the research base in tribology for the UK and will impact both industry, with improved products and processes, and academia with the supply of new technology and analytical methods.

Societal Impact. The development of new tribological processes, and engineers skilled in their conception and implementation, will have broader societal impact with machines and process that run with lower friction, higher energy efficiency and have greater durability. In the shorter term, we also plan as part of the iT-CDT for public engagement events using PhD students as the agents of delivery.