Lubricant additives (LAs) play a crucial role in enhancing the lubrication performance and durability of oils. However, inorganic nanoparticle (INP) LAs often encounter challenges related to poor dispersion stability. Here, polymer micelles were investigated as potential LAs to evaluate their effect on the lubricating properties of base oils and to explore their friction reduction mechanism. Through the polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) approach, spherical micelles of the block copolymer poly(lauryl methacrylate)–poly(benzyl methacrylate) (PLMA_x–PBzMA_y) were synthesized in oil. These micelles, prepared in situ, exhibited exceptional dispersion stability surpassing that of inorganic nanoparticles (SiO₂) for over 300 days. Tribological testing revealed that the self-assembled micelles could disentangle to form a robust layer of a polymeric tribofilm, effectively preventing wear on the contacting surfaces during friction. Consequently, the load-bearing capacity was significantly enhanced to 1000 N while maintaining a stable low coefficient of friction (COF) and low wear rate. This work presents a design protocol for LAs distinguished by their superb dispersion stability, antifriction, and antiwear characteristics.

中文翻译：

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油中聚合诱导的自组装胶束作为具有增强摩擦学性能的润滑剂添加剂

润滑油添加剂 (LA) 在提高油品的润滑性能和耐久性方面发挥着至关重要的作用。然而，无机纳米颗粒（INP）LA经常遇到分散稳定性差的挑战。在此，研究了聚合物胶束作为潜在的 LA，以评估其对基础油润滑性能的影响并探索其减摩机制。通过聚合诱导自组装（PISA）方法，在油中合成了嵌段共聚物聚（甲基丙烯酸月桂酯）-聚（甲基丙烯酸苄酯）（PLMA _x –PBzMA _{y ）的球形胶束。这些原位制备的胶束在超过 300 天的时间内表现出超越无机纳米颗粒 (SiO 2} )的卓越分散稳定性。摩擦学测试表明，自组装胶束可以解开，形成坚固的聚合物摩擦膜层，有效防止摩擦过程中接触表面的磨损。因此，承载能力显着增强至 1000 N，同时保持稳定的低摩擦系数 (COF) 和低磨损率。这项工作提出了一种 LA 的设计方案，其特点是具有卓越的分散稳定性、减摩和抗磨特性。