Tribological Properties of Water-lubricated Rubber Materials after Modification by MoS2 Nanoparticles

Tribological Behavior of Cotton Fabric/Phenolic Resin Laminated Composites Reinforced with Two-Dimensional Materials

In this study, cotton fabric-reinforced phenolic resin (CPF) composites were modified by adding four two-dimensional fillers: graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4), graphite (Gr), molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN). The tribological properties of these modified materials were investigated under dry friction and water lubrication conditions. The CPF/Gr composite exhibits significantly better tribological performance than the other three filler-modified CPF composites under dry friction, with a 24% reduction in friction coefficient and a 78% reduction in wear rate compared to the unmodified CPF composite. Under water lubrication conditions, all four fillers did not significantly alter the friction coefficient of the CPF composites. However, except for an excessive amount of Gr, the other three fillers can reduce the wear rate. Particularly in the case of 10% MoS2 content, the wear rate decreased by 56%. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were employed for the analysis of the morphology and composition of the transfer films. Additionally, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were conducted to investigate the adsorption effects of CPF/Gr and CPF/MoS2 composites on the counterpart surface under both dry friction and water lubrication conditions. The difference in the adsorption capacity of CPF/Gr and CPF/MoS2 composites on the counterpart, as well as the resulting formation of transfer films, accounts for the variation in tribological behavior between CPF/Gr and CPF/MoS2 composites. By combining the lubrication properties of MoS2 and Gr under dry friction and water lubrication conditions and using them as co-fillers, we can achieve a synergistic lubrication effect.

Mechanical Properties, Radiation Resistance Performances, and Mechanism Insights of Nitrile Butadiene Rubber Irradiated with High-Dose Gamma Rays

The radiation effect of materials is very important and directly related to the safety and reliability of nuclear reactors. Polymer materials, one of the indispensable materials in nuclear power equipment, must withstand the ordeal of high-energy ionizing rays. In this work, through screening different γ-ray dose irradiation conditions, we systematically and comprehensively study the changes in the structure and properties of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) before and after γ-ray static irradiation at a high dose rate, and master the rule and mechanism of the γ-ray static irradiation effect of these polymer materials. The mapping relationship between the macroscopic properties, microstructure, and irradiation dose of NBR is accurately characterized. With an increase in total irradiation dose, the C=C double bond reaction occurs, and the C≡N bond, C=C, and C=O participate in the hyper crosslinking reaction. The glass transition temperature (Tg) increases with the cumulative irradiation amount. With the increased total irradiation amount, the degree of rubber cross-linking increases, causing an increased crystallinity and decomposition temperature. A growing amount of gamma irradiation causes the mechanical properties of the rubber to degrade simultaneously, increasing the shore hardness while decreasing the tensile strength and ultimate elongation at break. When the cumulative amount reaches 1 MGy, the ultimate elongation at break decreases significantly. A cumulative dose of radiation resistance of 4 MGy can be achieved by the samples. This work can provide theoretical and experimental support for the long-term stability of nitrile butadiene rubber and its derivatives in nuclear radiation fields and space radiation conditions.

Two-Layer Rubber-Based Composite Material and UHMWPE with High Wear Resistance

The aim of the study is the development of two-layer materials based on ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) and isoprene rubber (IR) depending on the vulcanization accelerators (2-mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT), diphenylguanidine (DPG), and tetramethylthiuram disulfide (TMTD)). The article presents the study of the influence of these accelerators on the properties and structure of UHMWPE. It is shown that the use of accelerators to modify UHMWPE leads to an increase in tensile strength of 28–53%, a relative elongation at fracture of 7–23%, and wear resistance of three times compared to the original UHMWPE. It has been determined that the introduction of selected vulcanization accelerators into UHMWPE leads to an increase in adhesion between the polymer and rubber. The study of the interfacial boundary of a two-layer material with scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed that the structure is characterized by the presence of UHMWPE fibrils localized in the rubber material due to mechanical adhesion.

High-Temperature Tribological Behavior of HDPE Composites Reinforced by Short Carbon Fiber under Water-Lubricated Conditions

The polymer water-lubricated bearing is widely used in marine transmission systems, and the tribological properties can be improved by addition of inorganic nano-fillers. The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of SCFs and temperature on the water-lubricating properties of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) composites. HDPE composites reinforced by varying content of short carbon fibers (SCFs) were fabricated via twin-screw extrusion and injection molding techniques to study the hardness and surface wettability of those composites. The tribological properties under water-lubricated conditions were investigated through a pin-on-disk reciprocating tribometer under different temperatures. The results showed that the increase in hardness of HDPE composites reached maximum to 42.9% after adding 25 wt % SCFs. The contact angle also increased with the increase in SCFs content and reached a maximum of 95.2° as the amount of SCFs increased to 20 wt %. The incorporation of SCFs increased the wear resistance and lubricating property of HDPE composites at different temperatures. The HDPE composite containing 20 wt % SCFs showed the lowest friction coefficient of 0.076 at 40 °C, and the wear track depth reached a maximum of 36.3 mm at 60 °C. Based on the surface wetting property and wear analysis, potential effect mechanisms of fillers and temperature were discussed. The knowledge from this study is useful for designing the anti-wear water-lubricated polymer bearing.

Study on water resistance and tribological behaviours of basalt fibre/acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber composites under water lubrication at various temperatures

In this study, the effects of water ageing on characteristics and properties of basalt fibre (BF)/acrylonitrile-butadiene rubber (NBR) composites were investigated, and the tribological behaviours of the composites that slide against the stainless-steel counterpart under water lubrication at 30–70 °C were the main focus. Results showed that with the water temperature increase, the hardness and tear strength of the water-aged samples decreased. Furthermore, both the friction coefficient (COF) and specific wear rate (W_s) of the composites increased with the temperature. The content and the orientation of BFs had no obvious effect on the COF, whereas the parallel-aligned BFs were effective at improving the wear resistance of the composites at both 30 °C and 70 °C.

BF/NBR composites with high wear resistance under water lubrication were prepared and systemically investigated for the first time.

Rippled Polymer Surface Generated by Stick-Slip Friction

Textured surfaces with varied functionalities are generally fabricated by etching, cutting, or printing. In this study, different from the usual generation of grooves along the sliding direction in friction, regular parallel ripples that are perpendicular to the sliding direction were generated on a polymer surface by the stick-slip friction of polymer/metal friction pairs lubricated with water. Ripple height was proportional to the peak friction force in the sticking process. Ripple wavelength decreased as the sliding velocity increased. The generation of ripples was ascribed to the adhesion and plastic deformation during stick-slip motion. The achieved rippled surface effectively improved the lubrication property of the two surfaces. These findings demonstrate a new method of in situ manufacturing ripples on a soft material surface through a controlled traditional sliding friction and also provide a new insight into the stick-slip friction behavior of materials.

Coupling mechanism between wear and oxidation processes of 304 stainless steel in hydrogen peroxide environments

Stainless steel is widely used in strongly oxidizing hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) environments. It is crucial to study its wear behaviour and failure mode. The tribological properties and oxidation of 304 stainless steel were investigated using a MMW-1 tribo-tester with a three-electrode setup in H₂O₂ solutions with different concentrations. Corrosion current densities (CCDs), coefficients of frictions (COFs), wear mass losses, wear surface topographies, and metal oxide films were analysed and compared. The results show that the wear process and oxidation process interacted significantly with each other. Increasing the concentration of H₂O₂ or the oxidation time was useful to form a layer of integrated, homogeneous, compact and thick metal oxide film. The dense metal oxide films with higher mechanical strengths improved the wear process and also reduced the oxidation reaction. The wear process removed the metal oxide films to increase the oxidation reaction. Theoretical data is provided for the rational design and application of friction pairs in oxidation corrosion conditions.