Date of Graduation
12-2006
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering
Degree Level
Undergraduate
Department
Mechanical Engineering
Advisor/Mentor
Malshe, Ajay P.
Committee Member/Reader
Gordon, Matthew H.
Abstract
Nano-engineered lubricant additives such as organically-active nanoparticles of molybdenum disulphide (Hybrid-milled MoS2) are becoming increasingly popular in the fight against harsh friction and wear that occurs during boundary-layer lubrication. A previous paper (Verma, 2007), has reported improvements in both coefficient of friction and wear scar diameter; however, there exists very little data concerning the methods through which this improvement is achieved. Using techniques such as atomic force microscopy (AFM), nanoindentation, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), focused ion beam (FIB), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) as well as tribometery, the chemical and mechanical characteristics of the nanoparticle based tribofilm are characterized. It was found that after 10 minutes of boundary-layer lubrication, a "pad-like" film of MoS2 islands approximately 3 microns in diameter are formed on 52100 steel. The thickness of the film was determined to be on the order of 120 nm using FIB as well as nanoindentation.
Citation
Thompson, C. (2006). Design of novel experimental techniques to investigate the formation of nanoparticle-based tribofilms. Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses Retrieved from https://scholarworks.uark.edu/meeguht/22