High-Temperature Tribological Performance of Self-Lubricating Composites
Summary
Self-lubricating composites designed for elevated temperatures combine a robust matrix with dispersed solid lubricants to maintain low friction and wear under harsh thermal conditions. At temperatures beyond the degradation limits of traditional oils and greases, materials such as metal alloys, ceramics or intermetallics are reinforced with compounds like molybdenum disulphide, hexagonal boron nitride, calcium fluoride or silver. During sliding, these composites form tribo-films—thin surface layers of oxides, salts or lamellar solids—that continually replenish the contact interface and inhibit adhesive and abrasive mechanisms. The design of these materials draws on powder-metallurgy, thermal spraying, vapour deposition and additive manufacturing to tailor microstructure, phase composition and lubricant distribution. Synergistic combinations of soft metals, layered solids and high-temperature oxides yield adaptive lubrication over wide thermal ranges, while maintaining mechanical integrity. Applications span aerospace bearings, high-speed machining tools, automotive turbochargers and power-plant valves. Recent trends focus on understanding the evolution of tribo-films by advanced microscopy and spectroscopy, optimising multi-component systems for environmental adaptability, and integrating novel solid lubricants for temperatures up to and beyond 1000 °C.
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High-Temperature Tribological Performance of Self-Lubricating Composites publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in high-temperature tribological performance of self-lubricating composites across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Tribology: The science of friction, wear and lubrication between interacting surfaces in relative motion.
Self-lubricating composite: A composite material containing inbuilt solid lubricants that form protective films under sliding to reduce friction without external fluids.
Tribo-film: A dynamically formed surface layer of oxides, salts or lamellar solids that provides lubrication and wear protection during sliding.
Oxidation wear: A high-temperature wear mechanism involving formation and removal of oxide layers, which can either protect or abrade the surface.
Powder metallurgy: A fabrication process in which metal or ceramic powders are compacted and sintered to produce components with tailored compositions and microstructures.
References
- Solid Lubrication at High-Temperatures—A Review. Materials (2022).
- High-Temperature Solid Lubricants and Self-Lubricating Composites: A Critical Review. Lubricants (2022).
- The Mechanism of Wear Reduction in the Ni-CaF2 Composite Material: Raman and Confocal Microscopy Insights. Materials (2022).
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