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The Tribological Mechanism of Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles as Lubricant Additive of Poly-Alpha Olefin

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Abstract

Oleylamine (hereinafter referred to as OM)-modified CeO2 nanoparticles were synthesized by a one-pot pyrolysis method. The tribological properties of the as-prepared CeO2 nanoparticles as the lubricant additive in poly-alpha olefin (PAO) were investigated with a four-ball machine, and their lubricating mechanism was discussed in relation to worn surface analyses by SEM, EDS, and XPS. Findings indicate that these nanoparticles exhibit good dispersibility as well as excellent anti-wear ability in PAO. This is because OM-modified CeO2 nanoparticles can catalyze the oxidation of metallic Fe to form ferrite oxide-containing tribo-film. Under the condition of ASTM D2266-2001, the same lowest WDS was obtained at the concentration of 0.2 wt% and 1.8 wt%. When the concentration of CeO2 is 0.2 wt%, a compact catalytic oxidation tribo-film is formed, which has more outstanding long-term anti-wear ability. When 1.8 wt% CeO2 is added, the tribo-film formed is the combination of catalytic oxidation film and ceria deposition film, which has more significant bearing capacity.

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Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the financial support provided by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 21671053, 51775168 and 51875172) and Scientific and technological innovation team of Henan Province University (Grant No. 19IRTSTHN024).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Engineering Research Center for Nanomterials, Henan University, Kaifeng, 475004, China

    Lili Wu, Xue Lei, Yujuan Zhang, Shengmao Zhang, Guangbin Yang & Pingyu Zhang

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  1. Lili Wu
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Correspondence to Yujuan Zhang or Shengmao Zhang.

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Wu, L., Lei, X., Zhang, Y. et al. The Tribological Mechanism of Cerium Oxide Nanoparticles as Lubricant Additive of Poly-Alpha Olefin. Tribol Lett 68, 101 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11249-020-01340-7

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