Recent Advances in Eco-Friendly Ionic Liquids as Lubricants and Additives

A special issue of Lubricants (ISSN 2075-4442).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 September 2025 | Viewed by 536

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Kate Gleason College of Engineering, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY 14623, USA
Interests: lubricants; friction; wear; ionic liquids; textured surfaces
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Guest Editor
Department of Marine Science and Technology, University of Oviedo, Blasco de Garay, s/n, 33203 Gijón, Spain
Interests: tribology; friction; wear; lubrication; ionic iquids

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Since 2001, when the first study on using Ionic Liquids (ILs) as lubricants was published, interest in these ordered fluids has grown significantly within the tribology community. ILs, known for their low melting points and customizable physico-chemical properties, offer several unique advantages for lubricant applications. Their non-flammability, negligible volatility, excellent thermal stability, and wide liquid range make them highly promising candidates. Additionally, their high polarity can enhance the formation of adsorption films or tribolayers on contact surfaces, leading to notable reductions in friction and wear. This Special Issue aims to capture recent progress and explore emerging trends in the application of eco-friendly ionic liquids as lubricants and additives. Key topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

  • Ionic Liquids as high-performance neat lubricants.
  • Ionic Liquids as additives in lubricants.
  • Biodegradability and miscibility of Ionic Liquids.
  • Ionic Liquids as additives in cutting fluids.
  • Ionic Liquids for high-temperature applications.

Dr. Patricia Iglesias
Dr. Marlene Bartolomé
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • ionic liquids
  • lubricants
  • additives
  • friction
  • wear
  • tribolayer

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

17 pages, 3902 KiB  
Article
Electrical Potential-Induced Lubricity Changes in an Ionic Liquid-Lubricated Friction Pair
by Raimondas Kreivaitis, Audrius Žunda and Albinas Andriušis
Lubricants 2025, 13(7), 311; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants13070311 - 17 Jul 2025
Viewed by 335
Abstract
The control of lubricity induced by electric potential is appealing for numerous applications. On the other hand, the high polarity of ionic liquids facilitates the adsorption of equally charged molecules onto polar surfaces. This phenomenon and its consequences are well understood at the [...] Read more.
The control of lubricity induced by electric potential is appealing for numerous applications. On the other hand, the high polarity of ionic liquids facilitates the adsorption of equally charged molecules onto polar surfaces. This phenomenon and its consequences are well understood at the nanoscale; however, they have recently garnered significant attention at the macroscale. This study investigates the lubricity of trihexyltetradecylphosphonium dicyanamide, a phosphonium ionic liquid, when used as a neat lubricant in reciprocating sliding under electrically charged conditions. Two different polarities with the same potential were applied to the friction pair of bearing steel against bearing steel while monitoring electrical contact resistance. The lubricity was evaluated through measurements of friction, wear, surface morphology, and composition. It was found that the application of electric potential significantly alters the lubricity of the investigated ionic liquid where a positive potential applied to the ball resulted in the least damaging situation. The recorded electrical contact resistance enabled the monitoring of tribofilm formation during reciprocation. It was found that there was minimal to no separation between interacting surfaces when the ball was changing direction. Full article
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