Evaluation of Tribological Performance of Jatropha Oil Modified With Molybdenum Disulphide Micro-Particles for Steel-Steel Contacts

Crude oil reserves are sapping with time, therefore researchers have considerably shifted their focus to bio-lubricants which can be surrogated for petroleum-based lubricants. The objective of the present research is to cater an idea to the researchers about the lubricating potentials of Jatropha oil (JO). The study was performed using reciprocating friction monitor (RFM) machine having ball-on-flat arrangement with 52100 chromium steel ball and EN-31 steel as a tribo-pair. The experiments were conducted at three different loads at a temperature of 40 degrees C. JO was mixed with glycerol (G) and different percentages of molybdenum disulphide (0.5%, 1%, 2%, and 3%) micro-particles to prepare a lubricant. The friction and wear of the tribo-pair was assessed in the presence of these mixtures. The results revealed that MoS2 micro-particles were effective in reducing both friction and wear, with minimum friction recorded at 2% MoS2 concentration. The coefficient of friction (COF) was reduced by 18-52% with the addition of MoS2 as compared to the base JO. The results showed that JO has better lubrication ability as compared to the commercial lubricant SAE 10W/30. The experimental results were substantiated by examinations of tribo-pairs on scanning electron microscope, optical microscope, and optical three-dimensional profilometer. The results were found to be in close agreement with each other. It was concluded that the blend (80% JO + 20% G + 2% MoS2) is a strong candidate that can be used in the place of mineral oils as a lubricant.

Automated summary

The study found that the Jatropha oil blend lubricant with molybdenum disulphide particles can effectively reduce friction and wear of the metal tribo-pair, with a friction reduction ranging from 18-52%, demonstrating better lubrication ability compared to commercial lubricants.