Tribological and wear performances of graphene-oil nanofluid under industrial high-speed rotation

Abstract

Abstract The detrimental mechanical friction and wear during high-speed rotation are always challenging in industrial manufacturing. To solve this problem, an effective lubricant of graphene-oil nanofluid (GON) is developed in this work while the tribological and wear performances of GON on high-speed rotation are systematically investigated. Tests conducted on the spindle bearing of CNC lathe, including the rolling bearing and the sliding bearing, manifest the validity of GON. Also, the effects of the concentration of graphene nanosheets and the rotation speed on the wear performance are quantitatively studied. Each friction test is conducted for 10 h and the temperature as well as wear scars are analyzed. The results show the excellent thermal dissipation ability of GON at different high speeds. Moreover, it is proved that GON can lead to the better surface quality of bearings, and the higher concentration of graphene nanosheets in GON tend to induce better wear performance as well as faster heat dissipation. Our findings demonstrate the outstanding tribological and wear performances of GON under high-speed rotation, indicating the potential of GON as efficient lubricant for industrial high-speed manufacturing.