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Nanoscale Boundary Lubrication Studies

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Nanotribology and Nanomechanics

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Summary

Boundary films are formed by physisorption, chemisorption, and chemical reaction. With physisorption, no exchange of electrons takes place between the molecules of the adsorbate and those of the adsorbant. The physisorption process typically involves van der Waals forces, which are relatively weak. In chemisorption, there is an actual sharing of electrons or electron interchange between the chemisorbed species and the solid surface. The solid surfaces bond very strongly to the adsorption species through covalent bonds. Chemically reacted films are formed by the chemical reaction of a solid surface with the environment. The physisorbed film can be either monomolecularly or polymolecularly thick. The chemisorbed films are monomolecular, but stoichiometric films formed by chemical reaction can have a large film thickness. In general, the stability and durability of surface films decrease in the following order: chemically reacted films, chemisorbed films, and physisorbed films. A good boundary lubricant should have a high degree of interaction between its molecules and the sliding surface. As a general rule, liquids are good lubricants when they are polar and, thus, able togrip solid surfaces (or be adsorbed). In this chapter, we focus on PFPEs. We first introduce details of the commonly used PFPE lubricants; then present a summary of nanodeformation, molecular conformation, and lubricant spreading studies; followed by an overview of nanotribological properties of polar and nonpolar PFPEs studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and some concluding remarks.

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Authors
  1. Bharat Bhushan
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  2. Huiwen Liu
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Nanotribology Laboratory for Information storage and MEMS/NEMS, The Ohio State University, 206 W. 18th Ave., Coumbus, Ohio, 43210-1107, USA

    Bharat Bhushan

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Bhushan, B., Liu, H. (2005). Nanoscale Boundary Lubrication Studies. In: Bhushan, B. (eds) Nanotribology and Nanomechanics. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-28248-3_19

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