Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen

Hydrogen internal combustion engines are up-and-coming power devices in the current energy field. However, engine lubricants are prone to contact with hydrogen and water vapor during operation, and the impact of these gases on the tribological properties of the lubricants has not yet been clearly st...

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Main Authors: Xinbo Wang, Lili Jin, Hao Zhang, Ruifeng Xu, Oleksandr Stelmakh, Zhiliang Jin, Yansong Liu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Tsinghua University Press 2025-04-01
Series:Friction
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.26599/FRICT.2025.9440934
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author Xinbo Wang
Lili Jin
Hao Zhang
Ruifeng Xu
Oleksandr Stelmakh
Zhiliang Jin
Yansong Liu
author_facet Xinbo Wang
Lili Jin
Hao Zhang
Ruifeng Xu
Oleksandr Stelmakh
Zhiliang Jin
Yansong Liu
author_sort Xinbo Wang
collection DOAJ
description Hydrogen internal combustion engines are up-and-coming power devices in the current energy field. However, engine lubricants are prone to contact with hydrogen and water vapor during operation, and the impact of these gases on the tribological properties of the lubricants has not yet been clearly studied. In this work, the tribological performance and mechanism of emulsified lubricants with varying hydrogen content were investigated. The results demonstrated that the width and the depth of the wear track on the GCr15 steel blocks decreased by 86.8% and 80.4%, respectively, as the volume ratio of hydrogen gas to oil increased from 0 to 100 vol%. The conversion of complete oxide layer (FeOOH–Fe2O3) and composite oxide layer (Fe–FeO–FeOOH–Fe2O3) at the frictional interface was proposed as the wear mechanism, and this mechanism was confirmed utilizing optical microscopy, contact three-dimensional (3D) profilometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). A complete oxide layer lubricated by pure oil results in severe adhesive wear at the friction interface, whereas a composite oxide layer under 80–100 vol% H2/oil emulsified lubricants was discovered to reduce oxidation corrosion and wear. The characteristics of this wear mechanism can be applied to reduce wear in tribo-pairs and lubricant designs of hydrogen internal combustion engines.
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id doaj-art-4c9dbc50b31b49b2b6d603cc3609c8e7
institution Kabale University
issn 2223-7690
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language English
publishDate 2025-04-01
publisher Tsinghua University Press
record_format Article
series Friction
spelling doaj-art-4c9dbc50b31b49b2b6d603cc3609c8e72025-08-20T03:51:59ZengTsinghua University PressFriction2223-76902223-77042025-04-01134944093410.26599/FRICT.2025.9440934Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogenXinbo Wang0Lili Jin1Hao Zhang2Ruifeng Xu3Oleksandr Stelmakh4Zhiliang Jin5Yansong Liu6Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaPetroChina Lanzhou Lubricating Oil R&D Institute, Lanzhou 730060, ChinaBeijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaPetroChina Lanzhou Lubricating Oil R&D Institute, Lanzhou 730060, ChinaBeijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaPetroChina Lanzhou Lubricating Oil R&D Institute, Lanzhou 730060, ChinaBeijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, ChinaHydrogen internal combustion engines are up-and-coming power devices in the current energy field. However, engine lubricants are prone to contact with hydrogen and water vapor during operation, and the impact of these gases on the tribological properties of the lubricants has not yet been clearly studied. In this work, the tribological performance and mechanism of emulsified lubricants with varying hydrogen content were investigated. The results demonstrated that the width and the depth of the wear track on the GCr15 steel blocks decreased by 86.8% and 80.4%, respectively, as the volume ratio of hydrogen gas to oil increased from 0 to 100 vol%. The conversion of complete oxide layer (FeOOH–Fe2O3) and composite oxide layer (Fe–FeO–FeOOH–Fe2O3) at the frictional interface was proposed as the wear mechanism, and this mechanism was confirmed utilizing optical microscopy, contact three-dimensional (3D) profilometry, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). A complete oxide layer lubricated by pure oil results in severe adhesive wear at the friction interface, whereas a composite oxide layer under 80–100 vol% H2/oil emulsified lubricants was discovered to reduce oxidation corrosion and wear. The characteristics of this wear mechanism can be applied to reduce wear in tribo-pairs and lubricant designs of hydrogen internal combustion engines.https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.26599/FRICT.2025.9440934hydrogenwear mechanismoxide form conversionhydrogen internal combustion engines
spellingShingle Xinbo Wang
Lili Jin
Hao Zhang
Ruifeng Xu
Oleksandr Stelmakh
Zhiliang Jin
Yansong Liu
Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
Friction
hydrogen
wear mechanism
oxide form conversion
hydrogen internal combustion engines
title Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
title_full Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
title_fullStr Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
title_full_unstemmed Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
title_short Wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
title_sort wear mechanism of steel materials oxide form conversion at the friction interface conducted by lubricants containing varying hydrogen
topic hydrogen
wear mechanism
oxide form conversion
hydrogen internal combustion engines
url https://www.sciopen.com/article/10.26599/FRICT.2025.9440934
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