Mechanochemistry in Lubrication
Lead Research Organisation:
Imperial College London
Department Name: Mechanical Engineering
Abstract
Improvements in lubricant technology are needed to reduce friction in machines and thus save energy and control global warming. Lubricants consist of a mineral or synthetic oil in which are dissolved up to ten or so chemical additives. The most important of these additives are friction and wear-reducing agents. These react with rubbing metal surfaces to form thin protective films that, as their names suggest, give low friction and wear. These films form only when surfaces rub together so they are often called "tribofilms".
Until recently we had very little idea of what caused tribofilms to form - was it the high temperature or pressure in rubbing contacts, or the metals becoming activated in some way by rubbing? This ignorance made it almost impossible to design additives except by trial and error or to build models their behaviour. However earlier this year it was shown conclusively that the most widely-used antiwear additive reacts in rubbing contacts because of the high shear forces present. These forces stretch the bonds in the molecules until they break, which leads to chemical reaction to form a tribofilm. This concept, of applied forces driving chemical reactions, is quite well known in modern chemistry and is called mechanochemistry. But this is the first time it has been shown indubitably to control tribofilm formation in the field of lubrication. It is very important insight since it points the way to us being able to predict how particular additive molecular structures will behave in rubbing contacts and thus design better additives to give lower friction and less wear.
The current project will explore the full significance of mechanochemistry to lubricant design and use. It will test which types of lubricant additive reaction are driven by shear forces and develop quantitative relations between reaction rate, applied shear force and temperature so as to enable modelling to proceed. It will look at a range of model antiwear additives with different but related structures to identify which bonds break to precipitate tribofilm formation - thereby enabling molecular structure to be optimised. It will also follow the reaction sequence that results from initial bond breaking to tribofilm formation by looking into rubbing contacts (with one transparent surface transparent) using chemical spectroscopy. All of this will be done in specially-designed test equipment that is able to reach the very high contact shear forces normally present in solid-solid rubbing contact conditions and that drive the chemical reactions involved.
The overall goal is to understand, for the first time and through the use of advanced experimental and modelling techniques, how lubricant additives react in rubbing contacts to form low friction and low wear films, and so to enable new and more energy-saving lubricants to be designed in future.
Until recently we had very little idea of what caused tribofilms to form - was it the high temperature or pressure in rubbing contacts, or the metals becoming activated in some way by rubbing? This ignorance made it almost impossible to design additives except by trial and error or to build models their behaviour. However earlier this year it was shown conclusively that the most widely-used antiwear additive reacts in rubbing contacts because of the high shear forces present. These forces stretch the bonds in the molecules until they break, which leads to chemical reaction to form a tribofilm. This concept, of applied forces driving chemical reactions, is quite well known in modern chemistry and is called mechanochemistry. But this is the first time it has been shown indubitably to control tribofilm formation in the field of lubrication. It is very important insight since it points the way to us being able to predict how particular additive molecular structures will behave in rubbing contacts and thus design better additives to give lower friction and less wear.
The current project will explore the full significance of mechanochemistry to lubricant design and use. It will test which types of lubricant additive reaction are driven by shear forces and develop quantitative relations between reaction rate, applied shear force and temperature so as to enable modelling to proceed. It will look at a range of model antiwear additives with different but related structures to identify which bonds break to precipitate tribofilm formation - thereby enabling molecular structure to be optimised. It will also follow the reaction sequence that results from initial bond breaking to tribofilm formation by looking into rubbing contacts (with one transparent surface transparent) using chemical spectroscopy. All of this will be done in specially-designed test equipment that is able to reach the very high contact shear forces normally present in solid-solid rubbing contact conditions and that drive the chemical reactions involved.
The overall goal is to understand, for the first time and through the use of advanced experimental and modelling techniques, how lubricant additives react in rubbing contacts to form low friction and low wear films, and so to enable new and more energy-saving lubricants to be designed in future.
Planned Impact
Economic Impact
This research will, for the first time, show at a molecular level how lubricant additives react at a in rubbing contacts to form low friction and low wear films. This will have immediate impact on the ability of lubricant and lubricant additive companies to design new and improved products. Currently new additive molecular designs and lubricant formulations are identified based largely on heritage knowledge and trial and error. The proposed research will transform this to a more scientific approach involving virtual testing prior followed by informed experiment.
The UK has a strong and successful presence in the lubricant and lubricant additive industrial sectors. There are two major UK-based lubricant producers as well as smaller ones. The lubricant additive sector in particular is very highly dependent on technical research and innovation as reflected in their spending on R&D. These companies will thus benefit directly from the proposed research as exemplified by the fact that a major additive and a major lubricant company have agreed to contribute both in cash and materials to the project.
The economic impact will, however, extend beyond lubricant-related industries. Currently there is strong legislative pressure on equipment manufacturers to improve the energy efficiency of their products. One important route to improved fuel efficiency is via liquid and grease lubricants that give reduced friction. Thus machine component and vehicle manufacturers will be beneficiaries of greater understanding of lubricant additive behaviour, improved low friction lubricants and reliable models of thin film lubrication. This benefit is exemplified by the fact that the world's leading rolling bearing company has agreed to contribute financially towards to the project.
Societal Impact
An urgent challenge in mechanical engineering is to increase the efficiency of machine components and so reduce energy consumption. At a national level this is needed to meet CO2 emission limits, to help cope with rising fuel costs and to reduce dependence on imported energy supplies. In global terms, increased machine use in countries such as China and India as these develop can only be mitigated by large increases in machine efficiency. Such efficiency increases can be achieved by reducing friction and it has been estimated that in passenger car vehicles, trucks and buses this has the future potential to reduce CO2 emissions by 3% of the world's total. In practical terms such friction reduction requires the parallel introduction of low viscosity lubricants and improved friction and wear-reducing additives. Such additives can only be developed and optimised from improved understanding of how they work and how their structure controls their performance, as will be provided by the current proposed research. Thus the proposed research will impact beneficially on the quest to reduce energy consumption and thereby control global warming.
A second very important societal issue is the control and reduction of NOx and particulate emissions, in particular from transport vehicles and especially in urban environments. The EU has strong legislation in place to ensure such reductions but current limits are constrained by the effectiveness of vehicle after-treatment systems. One problem is that these are susceptible to contaminants from lubricating oils, especially from the breakdown of antiwear and friction modifier additives that enter the exhaust gas via the combustion chamber. There is currently great interest in developing less harmful antiwear and friction-reducing additives. By providing understanding of the relationship between additive molecular structure and performance the proposed project should greatly assist in this quest; in particular by suggesting new molecules "outside the box" of existing lubricant additive structures rather than relying, as at present, on incremental progress based on existing experience.
This research will, for the first time, show at a molecular level how lubricant additives react at a in rubbing contacts to form low friction and low wear films. This will have immediate impact on the ability of lubricant and lubricant additive companies to design new and improved products. Currently new additive molecular designs and lubricant formulations are identified based largely on heritage knowledge and trial and error. The proposed research will transform this to a more scientific approach involving virtual testing prior followed by informed experiment.
The UK has a strong and successful presence in the lubricant and lubricant additive industrial sectors. There are two major UK-based lubricant producers as well as smaller ones. The lubricant additive sector in particular is very highly dependent on technical research and innovation as reflected in their spending on R&D. These companies will thus benefit directly from the proposed research as exemplified by the fact that a major additive and a major lubricant company have agreed to contribute both in cash and materials to the project.
The economic impact will, however, extend beyond lubricant-related industries. Currently there is strong legislative pressure on equipment manufacturers to improve the energy efficiency of their products. One important route to improved fuel efficiency is via liquid and grease lubricants that give reduced friction. Thus machine component and vehicle manufacturers will be beneficiaries of greater understanding of lubricant additive behaviour, improved low friction lubricants and reliable models of thin film lubrication. This benefit is exemplified by the fact that the world's leading rolling bearing company has agreed to contribute financially towards to the project.
Societal Impact
An urgent challenge in mechanical engineering is to increase the efficiency of machine components and so reduce energy consumption. At a national level this is needed to meet CO2 emission limits, to help cope with rising fuel costs and to reduce dependence on imported energy supplies. In global terms, increased machine use in countries such as China and India as these develop can only be mitigated by large increases in machine efficiency. Such efficiency increases can be achieved by reducing friction and it has been estimated that in passenger car vehicles, trucks and buses this has the future potential to reduce CO2 emissions by 3% of the world's total. In practical terms such friction reduction requires the parallel introduction of low viscosity lubricants and improved friction and wear-reducing additives. Such additives can only be developed and optimised from improved understanding of how they work and how their structure controls their performance, as will be provided by the current proposed research. Thus the proposed research will impact beneficially on the quest to reduce energy consumption and thereby control global warming.
A second very important societal issue is the control and reduction of NOx and particulate emissions, in particular from transport vehicles and especially in urban environments. The EU has strong legislation in place to ensure such reductions but current limits are constrained by the effectiveness of vehicle after-treatment systems. One problem is that these are susceptible to contaminants from lubricating oils, especially from the breakdown of antiwear and friction modifier additives that enter the exhaust gas via the combustion chamber. There is currently great interest in developing less harmful antiwear and friction-reducing additives. By providing understanding of the relationship between additive molecular structure and performance the proposed project should greatly assist in this quest; in particular by suggesting new molecules "outside the box" of existing lubricant additive structures rather than relying, as at present, on incremental progress based on existing experience.
Organisations
- Imperial College London (Lead Research Organisation)
- PCS Instruments (Collaboration, Project Partner)
- Afton Chemical (Collaboration)
- SKF (Sweden) (Collaboration)
- Baker Hughes (Collaboration)
- Shell Global Solutions International BV (Collaboration)
- BASF (Collaboration)
- SKF Group (International) (Project Partner)
- NewMarket Corporation (United States) (Project Partner)
- Tohoku University (Project Partner)
- Shell (United Kingdom) (Project Partner)
Publications
Maffioli L
(2022)
Slip and stress from low shear rate nonequilibrium molecular dynamics: The transient-time correlation function technique.
in The Journal of chemical physics
Ewen J
(2018)
Slip of Alkanes Confined between Surfactant Monolayers Adsorbed on Solid Surfaces
in Langmuir
Spikes H
(2018)
Stress-augmented thermal activation: Tribology feels the force
in Friction
Zhang J
(2022)
Substituent effects on the mechanochemical response of zinc dialkyldithiophosphate
in Molecular Systems Design & Engineering
Ewen J
(2020)
Substituent Effects on the Thermal Decomposition of Phosphate Esters on Ferrous Surfaces
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Garcia CE
(2021)
Temperature dependence of molybdenum dialkyl dithiocarbamate (MoDTC) tribofilms via time-resolved Raman spectroscopy.
in Scientific reports
Peng B
(2019)
The Development and Application of a Scuffing Test Based on Contra-rotation
in Tribology Letters
Spikes H
(2020)
Triboelectrochemistry: Influence of Applied Electrical Potentials on Friction and Wear of Lubricated Contacts
in Tribology Letters
Luiz J
(2020)
Tribofilm Formation, Friction and Wear-Reducing Properties of Some Phosphorus-Containing Antiwear Additives
in Tribology Letters
Dawczyk J
(2018)
Use of FIB to Study ZDDP Tribofilms
in Tribology Letters
Ueda M
(2021)
Wear of hydrogenated DLC in MoDTC-containing oils
in Wear
Ueda M
(2020)
ZDDP Tribofilm Formation on Non-Ferrous Surfaces
in Tribology Online
Description | Lubricants contain chemical additives that are included in order to form films in rubbing surfaces that reduce friction and also protect the surfaces from damage - especially wear, seizure and fatigue. Over the last few years there has been growing realisation that the chemical reactions to form these films are driven not just by temperature, as is normally the case, but also and to a large extent by the very high stresses produced when surfaces rub together. This phenomenon is known as mechanochemistry. This project has proved unambiguously for the first time that this is indeed the case and that several additives used to reduce wear are, indeed driven to form protective films by the high shear stress in contact. It has also shown what molecular characteristics of these additives are responsive to applied stress The insights and findings of this project enable the whole process of protective film formation to be modelled accurately and this, combined with modelling of molecular reactions currently being undertaken, should make it possible in future to develop new and better additives largely using computers -requiring far less expensive and time-consuming experimental synthesis and testing to be carried out. The research has also pointed us in an important new direction t0 study the impact of rubbing on mechanochemical cleavage of C-C bonds and thus formation of protective carbon films on rubbing surfaces. We have found that this occurs much more easily in an inert atmosphere (N2 or Ar) than in air and provides a wholly new interpretation of the phenomenon known as oxidative wear. This has led us on to strong current interest in the behaviour of lubricants in inert environment conditions. We have realised that this, combined with the recent availability of low cost, low mass nitrogen concentrators may be used to develop "inerted" lubricated systems and that this could potentially make an enormous contribution to sustainability. |
Exploitation Route | Our research on shear stress-driven ZDDP tribofilm formation is already being continued by ourselves and others (e.g. Prof Carpick at Penn State) and being extended to other lubricant additives. Our finding that carbon film formation by base oils is promoted in a N2 atmosphere is already leading to a revision of views on this phenomenon and its origin. It may also be applied in future by ourselves and others to help understand the role of mechanochemistry in tribo-degradation - the more rapid degradation of lubricants when rubbing is present than when it is not. |
Sectors | Aerospace, Defence and Marine,Chemicals,Energy,Transport |
Description | The role that mechanical forces can have in driving chemical reactions, i.e. mechanochemistry, has only been widely recognised in the last decade. However, it has very rapidly become an important and growing area of research and application in the fields of chemistry and biochemistry; for example, in synthesising new chemicals, and understanding how stem cells become differentiated as a foetus develops. Clearly, very strong mechanical forces are present in lubricated rubbing contacts, and over the last decade it has become increasingly evident that these forces are important drivers of most (if not all) tribochemical reactions. This project aimed to confirm this conclusively and to quantify, at a molecular level, the impact of mechanochemistry on lubricant additive behaviour. The first task was to develop a test rig that provided very large and controlled mechanical forces in rolling-sliding contacts, to enable sufficiently high stresses for mechanochemical processes to take place using industrially important substrates, i.e. steel and diamond-like-carbon. This involved the development of a new tribometer, the ETM, with PCS Instruments. Using a range of additives specially synthesised for the project by Afton Chemical, this tribometer was then used to show unambiguously that shear stress is a key driver of the formation of protective tribofilms by antiwear additives and some friction modifiers. The main impacts of this were (i) proof of the mechanochemical origin of the tribofilm formation reactions of the various lubricant additives; (ii) correction of a previous, erroneous belief that pressure (as opposed to shear stress) was the most important driver; (iii) proven kinetic equations for additive reaction rates as a function of shear stress and temperature for use in macroscale mixed lubrication modelling; (iv) development of a new high pressure test rig that has now been marketed by PCS and is being used internationally by companies and academics to develop lubricant formulations to prevent scuffing and reduce friction and wear; and (v) improved understanding of molecular structure-performance relationships for lubricant additives under mechanochemical conditions. The second phase of the study involved the development of a method of monitoring the chemical composition of tribofilms on surfaces during rubbing. A new Raman spectrometer was designed and built that could be coupled into tribometers, including the ETM. This was used to quantify the change in the kinetics of friction modifier film formation due to mechanochemical effects. It has also been used in a study with BASF, that resulted from this project, of the mechanochemical processes involved in ball milling. It is currently being employed to demonstrate the mechanochemical formation of carbon-based films under inert atmospheric conditions. Its main impact to date is to provide a method of monitoring the chemical evolution of additive films on surfaces during rubbing, or in response to changes of conditions, and thereby to consolidate our understanding of mechanochemistry and lubricant behaviour. In parallel with the above, the project also applied a range of molecular modelling tools to study the impact of mechanical forces on lubricant additives, focussing on the additive types that have also been investigated experimentally. This has revealed the impact of molecular structure on the mechanochemical processes and has largely been validated by the experimental work. The key impact of this is that it can now be used to explore new chemical structures in silico, without the need for extensive synthesis and experimental testing. This could enable the realisation of high-throughput screening and even autonomous molecular design of new additive structures with optimized performance. It also enabled the Tribology Group to develop world-leading expertise in reactive force field (ReaxFF) molecular dynamics simulations to tribology problems, which have since been applied in a range of other projects with Shell and Baker Hughes. The main intended focus of this project was to study the response of antiwear and friction-reducing lubricant additives to the forces present in rubbing contacts. However, towards the end of the project we also discovered a new and potentially very significant mechanochemical process, the formation from lubricants of very thin, protective carbon films on rubbing steel surfaces. These graphene-like films are only formed under inert gas conditions, such as a nitrogen atmosphere. This finding is changing a general assumption of the tribology community, which is that lubricants are generally less effective in inert gas conditions. The impact of this work is not yet clear but since nitrogen gas is now readily available using lightweight filter systems, this opens the possibility of operating some high temperature lubricated components, such as those found in aircraft and spacecraft, in an inert atmosphere, with very large potential increases in energy efficiency and useful lubricant life. We are still in the process of disseminating this concept. It is important to note that this project has played a major role in enabling appreciation of the significance of mechanochemistry become embedded in the outlook of tribology professionals, both in academia and industry. During the life of this project, a community of academic tribologists specialising in mechanochemical effects has nucleated, based largely in continental Europe and the US, and this project has ensured that the UK has been powerfully represented at the resulting meetings and debates. This community has forged strong links with mechanochemical research within chemistry as a whole; for example the PI has presented and participated at an American Chemical Society (ACS) meeting on mechanochemistry. Because our Tribology Group at Imperial College has particularly strong links with industry, we have played the major role in informing lubricant and additive companies (e.g. Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, Afton Chemical, Lubrizol, and Croda) about the importance of mechanochemistry in lubricant design and this is starting to modify some of their paradigms. A very important feature of this project is that by combining, almost uniquely, both experimental and chemical modelling activities it has enabled experimental validation of the modelling tools used and these tools are now being effectively transferred to industry for additive development. Based on the above, the main impact of our work to date has been to provide to the tribology community as a whole with definitive proof that the mechanical forces present in rubbing contacts drive the formation of protective chemical films - generally known as tribofilms. This has changed the mindset of both academic researchers and industries concerned with lubricant design and performance. This change will almost certainly result in the development of improved lubricants and lubrication practices, with consequent energy saving and reduction of emissions. |
First Year Of Impact | 2021 |
Sector | Chemicals,Transport |
Impact Types | Economic |
Description | Ball Milling Processes |
Amount | £220,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | BASF |
Sector | Private |
Country | Germany |
Start | 02/2020 |
End | 01/2021 |
Description | Controlling Friction Through Molecular Engineering |
Amount | £500,000 (GBP) |
Organisation | Royal Academy of Engineering |
Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 10/2020 |
End | 09/2025 |
Description | EPSRC iCASE 2022 training grant - iCASE studentship with Shell (voucher number 220145) |
Amount | £135,000 (GBP) |
Funding ID | 220145 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 11/2022 |
End | 11/2026 |
Description | INFUSE: Interface with the Future - Underpinning Science to Support the Energy transition |
Amount | £4,191,430 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/V038044/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 03/2021 |
End | 02/2026 |
Description | INFUSE: Interface with the Future - Underpinning Science to Support the Energy transition |
Amount | £4,191,430 (GBP) |
Funding ID | EP/V038044/1 |
Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
Sector | Public |
Country | United Kingdom |
Start | 09/2021 |
End | 08/2026 |
Title | Atmophere-controlled HFRR |
Description | A new research tool to investigate lubricity and wear resistance of lubricants in controlled atmosphere, i.e. inert gas such as nitrogen and argon, controlled oxygen level... |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2021 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Due to mechanochemical reaction of base oil at asperity contacts, a carbon-based boundary film can form on rubbing surfaces to generate low friction and wear. This film is either unable to form or is oxidised in higher oxygen content atmospheres, and thus leads to high friction and wear. |
Title | Extreme traction machine |
Description | A very high pressure machine to measure fluid friction at very high pressure and to study lubricant behaviour at up to 7 GPa was commissioned and has been validated |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2018 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | EHD traction data at < 3 GPa needed for predicting performance of rolling bearings and traction drives. Demonstration that stress derived antiwear additive reaction in steel/steel contacts |
Title | In-lubro MTM Raman |
Description | A new research tool to directly interrogate the chemical composition of the tribofilm on a rubbed surface formed and immersed in lubricant |
Type Of Material | Improvements to research infrastructure |
Year Produced | 2021 |
Provided To Others? | Yes |
Impact | Elcidation of the kinetics of MoDTC film formation and fricion reduction and the competing formation of carbon-based and Mo-based film material. |
Description | Baker Hughes - PhD project |
Organisation | Baker Hughes |
Country | United States |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Using molecular simulations to improve understanding of diamond-rock friction, wear, and mechanochemistry |
Collaborator Contribution | PhD funding and tribometer experiments on rock surfaces |
Impact | Collaborative paper on diamond-rock friction: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.jpcc.1c02857 |
Start Year | 2019 |
Description | Ball Milling Processes |
Organisation | BASF |
Department | Advanced Materials and Systems Research |
Country | Germany |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Experimental study of mechanochemistry related to ball milling. |
Collaborator Contribution | Funding for PDRA and samples |
Impact | Report submitted to BASF. Multi-disciplinary including chemistry, mechanical engineering and materials |
Start Year | 2020 |
Description | PCS instruments - support for mechanochemistry |
Organisation | PCS Instruments |
Country | United Kingdom |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | We have commissioned and used a new test rig that PCS developed to our request |
Collaborator Contribution | Design , manufacture and free y of new test rig to our request Provision of a novel test rig able to operate in controlled atmosphere |
Impact | New research on tribology presented at six international conferences |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | SKF - support for mechanochemistry |
Organisation | SKF |
Department | S.K.F. Engineering & Research Services B.V |
Country | Netherlands |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Research on mechanochemstry |
Collaborator Contribution | £20000 cash plus use of SKF test equipment |
Impact | Presentations at 6 international conferences |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Shell Global Solutions UK Renewal |
Organisation | Shell Global Solutions International BV |
Department | Shell Global Solutions UK |
Country | Netherlands |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | Renewal of Shell GS UTC in Fuels and Lubricants at Imperial College 2013 |
Collaborator Contribution | Renewal of Shell GS UTC in Fuels and Lubricants at Imperial College 2018 |
Impact | Establishment of Shell GS UTC in Fuels and Lubricants at Imperial College 2013, seven PhD projects and five PDRA projects Renewal in 2108 for a further four years - four PhD students and one PDRA project to date |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | afton chemicals- support for mechanochemistry |
Organisation | Afton Chemical |
Country | United States |
Sector | Private |
PI Contribution | We are carrying out research on new chemicals that Afton have synthesised to our request |
Collaborator Contribution | Afton Chemicals have synthesised new molecules to our design to help us understand structure-property relations of lubricant additives at a fundamental level |
Impact | Presentations and posters at five international conferences |
Start Year | 2017 |
Description | Exhibition at the New Scientist Live, London October 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
Results and Impact | Our group routinely has an exhibition stand (E22 in 2022) at the New Scientist Live, where we explain the wonder of friction and interfaces to the general public. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018,2019,2022 |
URL | https://live.newscientist.com/partners-exhibitors |
Description | ITC_20190918 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Multiple presentation in one of the largest tribology conference, showcasing our research to both practioners, students and researchers. All presentations drew large crowds and lively discussions follows |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Invited Mechanochemistry talk at RCS Chemical Challenges in Tribology symposium |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Talk to symposium on new developments in Tribology research organised by RCS - caused strong interest |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Mechanochemical Behaviour of ZDDP, presentation to WTC 2017 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Presentation to scientists and engineers at the 6th World Tribology Congress (WTC), Beijing, 2017 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Mechanochemical behaviour of ZDDP lecture to STLE Annual conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Lecture to scientists and engineers at STLE Annual Meeting, Atlanta, 2017 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
Description | Mechanochemical film formation by ZDDP lecture at Asiatrib Conference 2018 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Lecture to 6th Asia International Conference on Tribology, Kuching, September 2018. Described importance of mechanochemistry in determining ZDDP behaviour. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Mechanochemistry in high shear stress, full film EHD conditions |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Lecture at STLE conference in Minneapolis, May 2018 to mainly US but also international researchers/business attendees |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Organised Web Seminar Series on Tribology 2020 and 2021 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
Results and Impact | Organised several webinars with world-leading experts in tribology. Streamed on YouTube to an audience in the thousands (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCN0JlzEr-iPAcWNb2JBnwMw). Funding and support obtained from IMechE, RSC, IOP, and CECAM. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020,2021 |
URL | https://wesstribo.com/ |
Description | Poster presentation to 2018 STLE Tribology Frontiers Conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Poster presentation at 2018 STLE Tribology Frontiers Conference |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
Description | Presentation at STLE Annual Meeting May 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Presentation of research on mechanochemical behaviour of base oils in an inert atmosphere. Much discussion and interest of the behavour observed |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | Presentation at Tribochemistry Forum, Beaune, July 2022 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Study participants or study members |
Results and Impact | Talk on mechanochemistry in inert atmospheres to ca 100 researchers interested in tribochemistry |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
Description | STLE conference_Nashville_20190520 |
Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Multiple presentations were done in STLE meeting (one of the largest professional lubrication engineering conference). They are have attracted large crowds and smaller groups discussion were held on various topics of our research. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2019 |
Description | Stress-augmented thermal activation - a new paradigm in Tribology |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | National |
Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
Results and Impact | Invited lecture at New Challenges in Tribology meeting organised by IET, Birmingham March 2018 |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
URL | https://pcs-instruments.com/iet-tribology-event-success-2018/ |
Description | Talk on mechanochemical carbon film formation at 24th Wear of Materials conference |
Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
Geographic Reach | International |
Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
Results and Impact | Presented new research showing for the first time that when surfaces are rubbed together in a hydrocarbon-based lubricant in a nitrogen atmosphere, a friction and wear-reducing carbon film is formed on the surfaces very rapidly by a mechanochemical process. This overturns a long-held (90 year old) model of lubricated oxidational wear and opens the possibility, coupled with nitrogen filters, of operating high temperature lubricated components such as aircraft transmissions in nitrogen gas rather than air. |
Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
URL | https://www.wearofmaterialsconference.com |