In the past there has been considerable interest in the possibility of using liquid lubricants containing dispersed, solid particles in the 1–50 micron size range to reduce friction and wear. These particles are used in greases and some industrial oils. Researchers are now directing their attention to the behavior of much smaller colloidal particles in the range of 5 nm to 200 nm diameter. Such systems are formally known as “colloidal sols” and have been claimed to influence friction and wear. Further reasons for studying such colloidal particles is that they are present in soot-contaminated engine lubricating oils, as wear debris and as partially-soluble additives. Thus, the objective of the work derived in this paper was to investigate the mechanism of action of colloidal solid particles in the range of 5 to 200 nm diameter in lubricating oils. Of particular interest was the effect of slide-roll ratio on particle entrainment and the influence of the ratio of particle diameter to elastohydrodynamic lubricant film thickness on particles’ behavior. This study has shown that in thin film contacts, colloid nanoparticles penetrate EHD contacts mainly by a mechanism of mechanical entrapment. It is found also that in rolling contacts at slow speeds, colloids formed a boundary film of at least 1 or 2 times the particle size. This film influence friction and wear. However, this film is lost at high speed and the film thickness reverts to the colloid-free fluid. The results of this study have enabled a mechanism of lubricating action by colloid sols to be derived.

In recent years there has been considerable interest in employing dispersed, solid colloidal panicles in the 1–500 nm diameter range to enhance the friction and wear characteristics of liquid lubricants. One important question concerning the use of these additives is the extent to which the tiny solid particles pass through rolling and sliding contacts. This paper describes a study of the lubricating behavior of two simple colloidal sol systems, one based on silver particles dispersed in an alkane and the other dispersed carbon black in mineral oil. Elastohydrodynamic film thickness measurements, in-contact visualization, friction and wear measurements are combined to investigate the extent to which colloidal solid particles enter a lubricated contact. It is shown that both of the colloidal sols studied contribute to film formation at very slow speeds, when the lubricant film thickness is less than the particle diameter. However they make no contribution to film thickness at higher speeds. The silver colloid reduces friction and wear in the thin film regime but the carbon black colloid shows a negligible beneficial effect.

Adobe bricks, formed from raw clay, are used as construction materials since ancient times. Their main drawback is a low flexural and compressive strength. Agave bagasse is a waste material from the Mezcal production process. Angustifolia haw agave bagasse fiber was added to improve the properties of adobes. Adobe bricks were made with agave fibers ranging from 10 to 25 mm length and 0.25 to 1% concentration. At 1% concentration of agave, 25 mm long, the compressive and flexural strength are improved by 33% and 7.01%, fulfilling the requirements of Mexican construction regulation norm N-CMT-2-01-001/02 class C.

It has been reported in the literature that overbased detergents can possess good antifriction and antiwear properties although the origins of these properties are not fully clear. In practice, over-based detergents are colloidal dispersions and this may be important in determining their properties and mechanism of action. In the current study, the lubricating properties of commercial, overbased magnesium and calcium sulfonates were measured in thin film, lubricated conditions and compared to a neutral sulfonate additive. A range of techniques was employed to evaluate the tribological performance of solutions of these additives. Film thickness measurements were carried out using optical interferometry and in-contact visualization, while friction and wear measurements complemented the study. It has been found that, when operating in thin film conditions, overbased detergents deposit solid-like boundary films on the rubbing surfaces. These films form in both rolling and mixed rolling/sliding conditions and, unlike many other colloidally-formed boundary films, are able to survive in high speed, thick film conditions. During formation, the film rapidly reaches a thickness corresponding to one colloid particle diameter, between 10 and 20 nm. After prolonged rubbing, however, the film thickness reaches the equivalent of three particle diameters. No such thick boundary films are observed with the neutral sulfonate. The boundary films formed by overbased detergents produce a significant reduction in wear. However, for the very smooth surfaces used in this study, they also result in an effective roughening of the very smooth surfaces studied. This leads to an increase in friction in the intermediate speed region by promoting solid-solid contact in thin fluid film conditions.