Functional fluids to reduce friction: from automotive to the "renewables" sector

Whether the global position on CO2 emissions has reached a "tipping point" or we are embarking on new climate milestones, the overwhelming body of evidence concludes that advances in science and technology need to be embraced to bring about control of climate change. There can be no more pressing technological challenge than to reduce the global emissions from transportation. This studentship will directly address this through the understanding of the action of new Organic Friction Modifiers (OFMs), whilst also assisting in the transition from technologies relying on burning of fossil fuels (IC Engines) to the development of wind and tidal energy.
To make the step change needed in the understanding (and optimisation) of OFMs, advanced techniques are required to probe the physical and chemical properties of ultra-thin films. The class of materials to be studied here is the Poly(2-oxazoline)s (POx) which have been used extensively in materials science, biochemistry, and biomedicine due to their biocompatibility and the ease of tuning parameters such as solubility, crystallinity, thermal transitions, etc. The POx of interest here have been molecularly designed to be oil soluble, while retaining strong friction-reducing properties.
The objectives of the project are
- To bring new techniques (in-situ atomic force microscopy) to the study of OFMs
- To optimise OFM use in fully formulated oils to facilitate a reduction of 1% in the fuel consumption in the IC engine
- To translate the friction and wear controlling functions of the OF molecules to the wind turbine sector through the study of micropitting in high stressed components like gears.
To build tribochemistry into the modelling of friction and wear in complex contacts