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Lubricants
Special Issues
Tribological Behaviours of Advanced Polymeric Materials
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Tribological Behaviours of Advanced Polymeric Materials

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2026) | Viewed by 2048

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Greg de Boer

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Interests: lubrication; contact mechanics; viscoelasticity; poroelasticity; multiscale simulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Josh Armitage

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Interests: surface engineering; tribochemistry; tribocorrosion; triboelectric charging
Dr. Seunghwan Lee

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Interests: biotribology; biomaterials; surface chemical modification
Dr. Cayetano Espejo Conesa

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Interests: polymer tribology; lubrication; lubricant formulation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

From before the vulcanisation of rubber, and the synthesis of the first fully synthetic polymer, up to recent uses of artificial intelligence for the prediction of advanced polymer formulations, polymeric materials have played a critical part in engineering applications. This Special Issue invites articles that exhibit cutting-edge research on polymeric surfaces and lubricants. We seek contributions that model tribological behaviours, focusing on visco-elasto-plasticity, in addition to multi-phasic materials and fluids. Additional properties to consider include surface cohesion, adhesion, and tribo-electric charging, crucial for applications in biomedical devices and flexible electronics.

We encourage submissions regarding innovative polymeric materials. Prominent examples include hydrogels and polymer brushes for medical implants and drug delivery systems; 2D polymers and conductive polymers for their potential in electronic skin and wearable sensors; and high-entropy polymer composites, bio-degradable and/or chemically recyclable polymers for sustainable solutions in automotive and aerospace industries.

This Special Issue aims to showcase experimental methods for evaluating tribological performance and analyses relevant to real-world applications, such as low-friction coatings for machinery and durable components for renewable energy systems. We are interested in dynamic mechanical analyses of complex polymeric materials, exploring visco-elasto-plastic and multi-phasic behaviours relevant to countless consumer goods. Multi-faceted analyses of unique material characteristics, including stimulus-responsive polymers and their electro-mechanical characterisation, are also sought, with applications in smart textiles and adaptive surfaces.

The primary objective of this Issue is to emphasise the importance of polymeric materials within tribological applications, highlighting the most recent advances and their novelty to the wider tribological community. By addressing these challenges and opportunities in tribological research, we aim to foster innovation and collaboration, paving the way for next-generation materials with superior tribological performance.

Kindest regards,

Dr. Greg de Boer
Dr. Josh Armitage
Dr. Seunghwan Lee
Dr. Cayetano Espejo Conesa
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Lubricants is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • visco-elastic-plastic tribology
  • soft contact mechanics
  • hydration lubrication
  • multi-phasic behaviour
  • polymeric tribology

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

26 pages, 4799 KB  
Article
Tribological and Micro-Mechanical Behaviors of Advanced Polyethylene (HDPE) by Radiation
by Martin Ovsik, Adam Cesnek, Adam Pis, Klara Fucikova and Michal Stanek
Lubricants 2026, 14(2), 87; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14020087 - 12 Feb 2026
Viewed by 631
Abstract
This study examines the tribological and micro-mechanical behavior of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which has been advanced to the class of advanced polymers through electron beam irradiation (irradiation dose of 33 kGy to 198 kGy). The tribological and mechanical behaviors were analyzed at the [...] Read more.
This study examines the tribological and micro-mechanical behavior of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), which has been advanced to the class of advanced polymers through electron beam irradiation (irradiation dose of 33 kGy to 198 kGy). The tribological and mechanical behaviors were analyzed at the surface and at various depths beneath the surface to verify the extent of radiation effects across the entire cross-section of the specimen. Changes in tribological and mechanical behavior are closely related to changes in the structure of the material, mainly changes in crystallinity. As this study shows, 99 kGy appears to be the ideal radiation dose in terms of the properties examined. An increase in absorbed radiation dose leads to a deterioration of tribological and mechanical performance, which correlates with material degradation and a concomitant reduction in crystallinity. The improvement in the properties examined between unirradiated and irradiated HDPE at a dose of 99 kGy is 18% for mechanical behaviors and 8% for tribological behaviors on the surface of the sample. A maximum deviation of 39% was identified between the surface and the center of the material. There was also a change in crystallinity of up to 12%. These modifications result in enhanced surface wear resistance and increased overall stiffness, effectively shifting commodity-grade HDPE toward the performance domain of advanced polymers with only minimal cost implications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Behaviours of Advanced Polymeric Materials)
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17 pages, 7222 KB  
Article
Wear and Friction Reduction on Polyethersulfone Matrix Composites Containing Polytetrafluoroethylene Coated with ZrW2O8 Particles at Elevated Temperatures
by Andrey I. Dmitriev, Sergei Yu. Tarasov, Dmitry G. Buslovich, Sergey V. Panin, Nikolai L. Savchenko, Lyudmila A. Kornienko, Evgeny Yu. Filatov, Evgeny N. Moskvichev and Dmitry V. Lychagin
Lubricants 2025, 13(12), 535; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants13120535 - 9 Dec 2025
Viewed by 706
Abstract
Polymer matrix composites (PMCs) have been prepared having a polyethersulfone (PES) matrix loaded with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) particles coated with negative thermal expansion zirconium tungstate (ZT) with an aim to reduce the thermal mismatch stresses at the PES/PTFE interfaces and, thus, reduce wear rate [...] Read more.
Polymer matrix composites (PMCs) have been prepared having a polyethersulfone (PES) matrix loaded with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) particles coated with negative thermal expansion zirconium tungstate (ZT) with an aim to reduce the thermal mismatch stresses at the PES/PTFE interfaces and, thus, reduce wear rate when sliding against a ball bearing AISI 52100 steel counterpart at elevated temperatures. The zirconium tungsten particles were synthesized using thermal decomposition from hydrothermally prepared precursors. The PMCs have been obtained using compression molding at 370 °C and contained, according to XRD, only the hexagonal α-ZrW2O8 phase. Wear testing was carried out at 25, 120, and 180 °C using a ball-on-disk scheme at 5 N and 0.3 m/s. The resulting wear tracks’ radial profiles were registered by means of profilometry, which was then used for calculating the wear rate. It was shown that both wear rate and friction reduced in testing the PES/PTFE/ZT samples at 180 °C compared to those of PES/PTFE containing only neat PTFE particles. Wear mechanism transitions have been observed from low-temperature generation of the tribological layer by the PTFE smearing to flow and abrasion wear at high temperatures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Behaviours of Advanced Polymeric Materials)
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