Friction and wear properties of base oil enhanced by different forms of reduced graphene

In this study, the tribological effects of three different forms of reduced graphene oxide (rGO)-2D nano-additives in base oil were investigated. Reduced graphene oxide nanoplatelets were manufactured using a modified Hummers’ method. However, different filtration methods were used to obtain rGO nanoplatelets at three different bulk densities. After adding nano-additives to the base oil at 0.01%w/w concentration, physical and chemical characterization tests were performed such as viscosity test, four-ball wear test, rotating pressure vessel oxidation test (RPVOT), resistivity test and friction coefficient test. The presented results show that material-1 with the lowest bulk density and less lattice defect can perform better by reducing wear of the material by 10.63% as well as the coefficient of friction (COF) by 6.3% with respect to the base oil and under test conditions. The presented results show the promising effect of rGO as nano-additives to fluid lubricants on wear preventive properties without compromising the physical and chemical characteristics of the lubricants.