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Lubricants
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Tribological Behavior of Nanolubricants: Do We Know Enough?
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Tribological Behavior of Nanolubricants: Do We Know Enough?

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 2730

Special Issue Editor

Dr. M. Z. Sharif

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Jabatan Teknologi, Fakulti Teknologi dan Kejuruteraan Mekanikal, Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Durian Tunggal 76100, Melaka, Malaysia
Interests: nanolubricant; nanoparticle dispersion technology; nanolubricants for refrigeration; air conditioning

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nanolubricants, created by dispersing nanoparticles within base lubricants, offer significant potential in reducing friction, enhancing wear resistance, and improving thermal stability in areas such as refrigeration, engine oils, machining, and industrial lubrication. Research has shown that nanoparticles alter lubrication regimes by enhancing film formation, modifying frictional interactions, and optimizing heat dissipation, similar to surface texturing in tribology. However, challenges remain in understanding the stability, dispersion mechanisms, chemical interactions, and long-term effects of these nanoparticles under varying operating conditions.

This Special Issue seeks contributions that investigate the following areas:

  • The lubrication performance of nanolubricants at low and high speeds, assessing film stability and shear resistance.
  • Nanoparticle–refrigerant interactions, including the miscibility, viscosity stability, and heat transfer of these systems.
  • The behavior of nanolubricants in relation to engine components, such as adsorption, tribo-film formation, and wear mitigation.
  • The effects of nanolubricants on wear, thermal stability, and extended service life, particularly in automotive and industrial applications.
  • Experimental, numerical, and computational studies on the performance optimization and real-world applications of nanolubricants.

By advancing our understanding of nanolubricants’ tribological behavior, we can optimize their role in enhancing energy efficiency and extending component longevity.

We invite you to submit your research to “Tribological Behavior of Nanolubricants: Do We Know Enough?” in Lubricants.

Dr. M. Z. Sharif
Guest Editor

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

  • nanolubricants
  • tribological behavior
  • lubrication regimes (boundary, mixed, EHD)
  • friction and wear reduction
  • nanoparticle dispersion stability
  • heat transfer and thermal stability
  • refrigeration and HVAC lubrication
  • engine oil and automotive tribology
  • machining and industrial lubrication
  • computational and experimental tribology

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

10 pages, 1247 KB  
Article
Thermal Management and Lubrication Characteristics of Tungsten Disulfide (WS2) Vegetable-Based Nanolubricants
by Jose Jaime Taha-Tijerina, Dyana De Leon-Elizondo, Jade Mendieta and Leonardo Taha-Soto
Lubricants 2026, 14(3), 115; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14030115 - 6 Mar 2026
Viewed by 945
Abstract
Recent innovations with the aid of nanotechnology are more frequently seen in the industrial sectors. Lubricants are a high-end commodity resource used in many manufacturing processes; unfortunately, most of these lubricants are petroleum-based, which come with certain drawbacks, such as environmental aspects, handling [...] Read more.
Recent innovations with the aid of nanotechnology are more frequently seen in the industrial sectors. Lubricants are a high-end commodity resource used in many manufacturing processes; unfortunately, most of these lubricants are petroleum-based, which come with certain drawbacks, such as environmental aspects, handling issues and high costs. With the incorporation of nanostructures within fluids and lubricants, novel material alternatives are replacing conventional lubrication systems, maintaining the required thermophysical and tribological characteristics. This research provides an analysis of vegetable lubricant, castor oil (CO), and the effects of the incorporation of WS2 nanofiller at diverse filler fractions. A TEMPOS thermal analyzer device and a four-ball tribotester are used for the analysis of thermal conductivity and tribological assessments, respectively. Results showed the enhancement of thermal conductivity as the filler concentration and the evaluation temperature of the nanolubricants increased. The best thermal conductivity improvement was 27%, at 60 °C with merely 0.20 wt.% of nanofillers. For tribological performance, a decrease of 6% in the coefficient of friction (COF) and 31% in the wear scar diameter (WSD) was observed at 0.10 wt.% and 0.20 wt.%, respectively. Adhesion of the nanostructures to the steel surfaces creates a protective layer, preventing direct contact of the friction pairs. These results are an outcome of applied theoretical concepts such as Brownian motion and nano-layering of the lubricant–nanostructure interface. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Behavior of Nanolubricants: Do We Know Enough?)
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22 pages, 3356 KB  
Article
Effect of TiO2 and SiO2 Nanoparticles on Traction, Wear, and High-Shear Viscosity of PAG Lubricants Under Elastohydrodynamic (EHL) Conditions for Refrigeration Systems
by Mohd Zaki Sharif, Mohd Syafiq Abd Aziz, Mohd Farid Ismail, Mohd Fadzli Bin Abdollah, Abdul Aziz Mohamad Redhwan, Nor Azazi Ngatiman and Anwar Ilmar Ramadhan
Lubricants 2026, 14(2), 78; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14020078 - 9 Feb 2026
Viewed by 712
Abstract
This study tests TiO2 and SiO2 nanolubricants in PAG oil using a Mini Traction Machine and an Ultra Shear Viscometer. The loads were 20 N and 40 N. The entrainment speeds ranged from 2.5 to 500 mm/s. The slide-to-roll ratio (SRR) [...] Read more.
This study tests TiO2 and SiO2 nanolubricants in PAG oil using a Mini Traction Machine and an Ultra Shear Viscometer. The loads were 20 N and 40 N. The entrainment speeds ranged from 2.5 to 500 mm/s. The slide-to-roll ratio (SRR) ranged from 25 to 150%. The nanoparticle concentrations were 0.01, 0.03, and 0.05%. The ball size was 19.05 mm, and the disc was 46 mm. All tests were run at 40 °C. Only the 0.05% concentration lowered traction compared with PAG at a fixed SRR. TiO2 at 0.05% showed the largest drop, up to 4.89% at 20 N and 2.99% at 40 N. However, lower concentrations increased traction. All the nanolubricants reduced wear. TiO2 at 0.03% gave the lowest wear, with a reduction of about 35 µm at 40 N. Nanolubricant samples stayed between 40.2 and 40.5 °C, while PAG reached about 41.0 °C. TiO2 produced slightly lower temperatures than SiO2. Ultra-shear tests from 40 to 100 °C showed shear thinning. In most conditions, TiO2 at 0.05% kept the highest viscosity at 40 and 60 °C, up to 12% above PAG. SiO2 showed smaller changes. TiO2 delivered better friction, wear, temperature, and viscosity performance. Overall, both nanolubricants at 0.03% are suitable when wear reduction and thermal stability are prioritised over traction reduction, such as in refrigeration applications, while the 0.05% suits high-load or high-shear use. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Behavior of Nanolubricants: Do We Know Enough?)
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14 pages, 1443 KB  
Article
The Coupling Influence of Load and Temperature on Boundary Friction of Fullerene Ball Nano-Additives
by Yu Rong, Xinran Geng, Chongyun Sun, Hailong Hu, Shuo Li, Zhichao Chen and Wenquan Lv
Lubricants 2025, 13(12), 547; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants13120547 - 16 Dec 2025
Viewed by 623
Abstract
This study employs molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the frictional behavior of fullerene nano-additives on Fe-C alloy surfaces under varying loads and temperatures, focusing on boundary lubrication conditions. The results show that the x-direction friction force exhibits minimal sensitivity to normal pressure [...] Read more.
This study employs molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the frictional behavior of fullerene nano-additives on Fe-C alloy surfaces under varying loads and temperatures, focusing on boundary lubrication conditions. The results show that the x-direction friction force exhibits minimal sensitivity to normal pressure due to the high rigidity of fullerene molecules, which limits variations in real contact area and atomic interactions. In contrast, temperature has a significant effect: as it rises, enhanced atomic vibrations and thermal activation lower energy barriers for sliding. The coefficient of friction (COF) consistently decreases with both increasing load and temperature, driven by the mechanism of thermally activated motion. Although partial rotational motion from sliding to rolling friction was not explicitly observed in the simulations, the study remains within the sliding-dominated regime, highlighting the importance of temperature over load in controlling friction. A linear relationship between lnCOF and 1/kBT yields an average activation energy of ~0.03 eV, supporting a thermally activated friction mechanism. By introducing a composite parameter that combines load and temperature effects, the study provides a predictive framework for modeling friction behavior under thermo-mechanical coupling. These findings enhance the understanding of the friction-reducing capabilities of fullerene additives and offer a foundation for designing advanced nano-lubricants in boundary lubrication systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Tribological Behavior of Nanolubricants: Do We Know Enough?)
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