Schematic diagram of the design strategy for superlubricity systems across a broad temperature range. (IMAGE)
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To develop a wide-temperature-range superlubricity system, researchers first fabricated a uniform boronized layer via electrochemical boronizing. Based on the synergistic effect of the boronized layer and polyol lubricants, a superlubricable surface was constructed in-situ during the running-in stage, which was essentially a –(CH2–CH2)n– passivation tribofilm. At this stage, within the well-constructed superlubricity interfaces, a sufficiently thick lubrication film forms to support the friction pairs, which effectively reduces direct contact between the friction pairs and thereby achieves superlubricity behavior. Finally, an important factor in enhancing the extreme-temperature performance of superlubricity is the incorporation of a larger number of hydroxyl groups in the lubricant molecules, which leads to thicker lubrication films and reduces contact between the friction pairs, facilitating superlubricity at high temperatures.
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