NANOSCALE FACTORS CONTROLLING FRICTION, LUBRICATION, AND WEAR: FROM 2D MATERIALS TO ENGINE OIL

Abstract: New insights into friction and wear from atomic force microscopy (AFM) and in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM) are presented. First, nanocontacts with 2-dimensional materials like graphene are discussed, where friction depends on the number of layers. An initial model attributing this to puckering [1] is now enhanced by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations showing a strong role of energy barriers due to interfacial pinning and commensurability [2]. Second, the origins of nanoscale wear using a novel combined TEM-AFM instrument is discussed. Wear of silicon sliding on diamond follows a kinetic model where energy barriers for chemical bonding are strongly affected by stress [3]. Finally, I will discuss very recent results where AFM is used to develop new insights into practical lubrication mechanisms. We study zinc dialkyldithiophosphates (ZDDPs), which are highly effective anti-wear additive molecules used nearly universally in engine oils. We developed a novel AFM-based approach for visualizing and quantifying the formation of ZDDP anti-wear films in situ at the nanoscale. Film growth depends exponentially on temperature and stress, which can explain the known graded-structure of the films. Our findings provide new insights into the mechanisms of formation of ZDDP derived anti-wear films and the control of lubrication in automotive applications [3].

Biosketch: Robert Carpick is John Henry Towne Professor, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering and Applied Mechanics, University of Pennsylvania, where he has served as Department Chair since 2011. Previously, he was a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2000-2007). He received his B.Sc. from the University of Toronto (1991), and his Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley (1997), both in Physics, and was a postdoc at Sandia National Laboratory (1998-1999). He studies nanotribology, nanomechanics, and scanning probes. He is the recipient of a NSF CAREER award (2001), the ASEE Outstanding New Mechanics Educator award (2003), the ASME Newkirk award (2009), an R&D 100 Award (2009), and is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the AVS, the Materials Research Society, and the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers. He holds 5 patents and has authored over 150 peer-reviewed journal publications.

Date/Time:
Date(s) - Jun 08, 2017
11:00 am - 12:00 pm

Location:
38-138 Engineering IV
420 Westwood Plaza Los Angeles CA 90095