January 10, 2018
Journal Article

Friction- and Wear-Reducing Properties of Multifunctional Small Molecules

Abstract

Nitrogen- and oxygen-containing compounds were designed and synthesized, and their tribological performance as multifunctional base oils (MFBOs) for internal combustion engine applications was evaluated. Two of the compounds displayed good rheology without the addition of polymeric viscosity modifiers, with a high viscosity index (VI) above 200.Additionally, all three MFBOs had lower coefficients of friction when compared to well established and accepted benchmarks, and demonstrated wear improvement by a factor of 5.5 to 70 compared to either of the benchmarks. Moreover, the compounds were easily synthesized in one step from commercial intermediates or starting materials. This work demonstrates that careful design of a single molecule might provide the functions of base oil, viscosity modifiers (or viscosity index improvers), anti-wear and friction reducing additives.

Revised: December 4, 2020 | Published: January 10, 2018

Citation

Cosimbescu L., N. Demas, J.W. Robinson, and R. Erck. 2018. Friction- and Wear-Reducing Properties of Multifunctional Small Molecules. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 10, no. 1:1317–1323. PNNL-SA-127377. doi:10.1021/acsami.7b13271