Greases are widely used for variety of applications at extreme pressures, temperatures, and speeds with obligation of high bearing and shaft life with low noise. The present study deals with the development of nanocomposite greases and records their flow and frictional characteristics. The commercial grease is modified, by dispersing nanoparticles, to get the nanocomposite greases. Reduced graphene oxide (rGO), calcium carbonate (CaCO3), and alpha-alumina (α-Al2O3) are used as nano-additives. The microstructure of newly developed greases is examined using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and the presence of different chemical functional groups is explored using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Further, the new greases are investigated for rheological, consistency, and tribological behavior using Visco Tester, penetrometer, and elastohydrodynamic (EHD) rig, respectively. The flow properties reveal the shear-thinning, yielding, and thixotropic nature of lubricating greases. The study shows that there is an optimality in concentration of different nano-additives above which grease's flow and tribological performance degrades. Up to 35%, 27%, and 10% reduction in coefficient of friction is recorded for optimum concentration of rGO nanosheets, CaCO3, and α-Al2O3 nanoparticles, respectively. The difference in the performance of nanocomposite greases can be attributed to the appearance of different friction mechanisms for different nano-additives.
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September 2017
Research-Article
Development of Nanocomposite Grease: Microstructure, Flow, and Tribological Studies
Jayant Singh,
Jayant Singh
Industrial Tribology, Machine Dynamics and
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Search for other works by this author on:
Deepak Kumar,
Deepak Kumar
Industrial Tribology, Machine Dynamics and
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
e-mail: dkumar@itmmec.iitd.ernet.in
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
e-mail: dkumar@itmmec.iitd.ernet.in
Search for other works by this author on:
Naresh Tandon
Naresh Tandon
Industrial Tribology, Machine Dynamics and
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Search for other works by this author on:
Jayant Singh
Industrial Tribology, Machine Dynamics and
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Deepak Kumar
Industrial Tribology, Machine Dynamics and
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
e-mail: dkumar@itmmec.iitd.ernet.in
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
e-mail: dkumar@itmmec.iitd.ernet.in
Naresh Tandon
Industrial Tribology, Machine Dynamics and
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
Maintenance Engineering Centre (ITMMEC),
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi,
New Delhi 110016, India
1Corresponding author.
Contributed by the Tribology Division of ASME for publication in the JOURNAL OF TRIBOLOGY. Manuscript received August 20, 2016; final manuscript received December 28, 2016; published online May 26, 2017. Assoc. Editor: Ning Ren.
J. Tribol. Sep 2017, 139(5): 052001 (9 pages)
Published Online: May 26, 2017
Article history
Received:
August 20, 2016
Revised:
December 28, 2016
Citation
Singh, J., Kumar, D., and Tandon, N. (May 26, 2017). "Development of Nanocomposite Grease: Microstructure, Flow, and Tribological Studies." ASME. J. Tribol. September 2017; 139(5): 052001. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4035775
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