Abstract
A series of new halogen-free dicationic ionic liquids (ILs) with different alkyl chain lengths were prepared, and the relationship between the alkyl chain length, physicochemical and tribological properties of ILs, and their role as neat lubricant for steel-steel friction pairs, was investigated. Evaluation of stability during hydrolysis and copper strip corrosion test results show that synthetic ILs are stable and not corrosive to metal contacts, due to the halogen-free anions. The friction and wear test results indicate that ILs with long alkyl chains have excellent friction-reducing and anti-wear properties, especially at high temperatures. Based on the surface three-dimensional (3D) profiles, electrical contact resistance, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and the X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) analysis of the worn surfaces of steel discs, we can conclude that the efficiency of ILs is due to the formation of high quality tribofilms that consist of both tribochemical reaction and ordered absorption films.
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Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge financial support from the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2018YFB0703802), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 51705504, 21972153, and 51675512), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation Funded Project (2019M653798), the Youth Innovation Promotion Association of CAS (2018454), the pre-research project in the manned space field (040101), and the Gansu Province Science and Technology Plan (18ZD2WA011).
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Qiangliang YU. He got his Ph.D. in 2016 at Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. He is an associate professor at the State Key Lab of Solid Lubrication in Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. His research focuses on the synthesis of task-specific ionic liquids lubricants, organic corrosion inhibitors, and the functional anti-corrosion coating.
Meirong CAI. She got her Ph.D. in 2012 at Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. She is an associate professor at the State Key Lab of Solid Lubrication in Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China. She has authored or co-authored 70 journal papers. Her research interests are tribochemistry, ionic liquids lubricants, and supramolecular gel lubricants.
Feng ZHOU. He is a full professor in Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China, and director of State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, China. He gained his Ph.D. in 2004 and spent three years (2005-2008) in the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge as a research associate. He has published more than 300 journal papers that received more than 17,000 citations and has the high-index 72. His research interests include the bioninspired tribology, biomimic surfaces/interfaces of soft matters, drag-reduction and antibiofouling, and functional coatings. He has gained a number of awards including “Outstanding Youth Award” of International Society of Bionic Engineering, 2013, and one National Award for Natural Sciences (the second class). He serves as an editorial board member of Tribology International, Journal of Fiber Bioengineering and Informatics, etc.
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Yu, Q., Zhang, C., Dong, R. et al. Physicochemical and tribological properties of gemini-type halogen-free dicationic ionic liquids. Friction 9, 344–355 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-019-0348-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40544-019-0348-5