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A novel design by constructing MoS2/WS2 multilayer film doped with tantalum toward superior friction performance in multiple environment

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Abstract

Transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are easily oxidized in the humid atmosphere, leading to a decrease in their lubricating properties and limiting their application. In this study, a MoS2/WS2 multilayer film doped with tantalum (MoS2/WS2-Ta) is fabricated by magnetron sputtering to improve the corrosion and oxidation resistance of TMDs. Results show that doping of Ta makes the structure of the MoS2/WS2 multilayer film more compact, and the MoS2 and WS2 crystals exhibit a stronger (0002) preferred orientation than that of un-doped sample. Such compact structure and (0002) preferred orientation of MoS2/WS2-Ta can realize a high corrosion resistance, i.e., a more positive corrosion potential and a lower corrosion current density in comparison with the MoS2/WS2 multilayer. Furthermore, the friction properties of MoS2/WS2 multilayer film doped with 1.1 at% of Ta are improved remarkably under both of high temperature (370 °C in air) and vacuum conditions, the result is attributed to its high mechanical properties and (0002) preferred orientation. In a word, the combination of multilayer structure and doping of Ta into the films is a promising approach to accurately design the TMDs toward a wide temperature range and environmentally adaptive lubricants.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. U1737214, 52005489), the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars of China (Grant No. 51825505), the Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation (Grant No. LR20E050001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Guangxi University, Nanning, 530004, People’s Republic of China

    Zhaoxia Lu & Chaozhi Zhang

  2. Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Related Technologies, Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Marine Materials and Protective Technologies, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315201, People’s Republic of China

    Chaozhi Zhang, Siming Ren & Jibin Pu

  3. School of Physics and Optoelectronics, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    Chun Zeng

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  1. Zhaoxia Lu
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  2. Chaozhi Zhang
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Correspondence to Siming Ren or Jibin Pu.

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Lu, Z., Zhang, C., Zeng, C. et al. A novel design by constructing MoS2/WS2 multilayer film doped with tantalum toward superior friction performance in multiple environment. J Mater Sci 56, 17615–17631 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-021-06217-1

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