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Origin of Ultra-Low Friction of Boric Acid: Role of Vapor Adsorption

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Abstract

Boric acid is a lamellar solid lubricant that can give an ultra-low friction coefficient. The origin of this ultra-low friction of boric acid was investigated using tribology and spectroscopy techniques in inert, humid, and organic vapor conditions. It was found that boric acid itself experiences high friction and catastrophic surface wear when rubbed with a stainless steel ball in dry nitrogen or oxygen environments, but it gives very low friction (µ = 0.06) in humid and acetone vapor environments. Short-chain alcohol vapors (ethanol and n-pentanol) did not show these ultra-low friction values. Vibrational spectroscopy indicates that the lubricating vapors do not adsorb on the basal plane of the boric acid crystal but likely adsorb onto the edge sites of the lamella. The alcohol molecules impinging from the gas phase readily react with the boric acid to form a high vapor pressure molecule that desorbs from the surface. The “unlocking” of the high-energy edge sites by adsorbed acetone and water vapor appears to be needed for the lamella to shear along the basal plane direction.

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Acknowledgments

This work was financially supported by the National Science Foundation (Grant Nos. CMMI-1000021 and 1131128).

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  1. Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Research Institute, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA

    Anthony J. Barthel, Jiawei Luo & Seong H. Kim

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  1. Anthony J. Barthel
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Correspondence to Seong H. Kim.

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Barthel, A.J., Luo, J. & Kim, S.H. Origin of Ultra-Low Friction of Boric Acid: Role of Vapor Adsorption. Tribol Lett 58, 40 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11249-015-0512-7

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