Molybdenum News Center

Why Can Molybdenum Disulfide (MoS2) Be Used as Solid Lubrication

As we all know, molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) is very popular in the world as solid lubrication. In the mid-19th century of the California Gold Rush, it was firstly used as a lubricant for carriage bearings.

During World War II, the Max Planck Institute in Germany and the National Aeronautics Commission, the predecessor of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration of the United States, conducted experiments on the use of MoS2 for industrial applications and developed organic bonding solid lubricating film. By the early 1950s, the United States formulated the US military standard for this material and regarded it as a military secret.

Subsequently, molybdenum disulfide sputtering film and ion plating film appeared one after another. In emerging industrial sectors and emerging technical fields, solid lubrication is gradually being applied. For example, in electronic machinery based on robots and electronic computers, its main lubrication parts are commonly used PTFE and lubricants.

As a solid additive, how can this material play its lubricating effect? 

Actually, its good lubricating performance is closely related to its crystal structure. The bonding force between the sulfur atoms and molybdenum atoms in each molecular layer is very strong while the bonding force between the sulfur atoms and the molybdenum atoms between the molecules is very weak. as a result, a low-shear plane is formed. When a small shear force is applied between them, it is easy to break along the molecular layer and form a slip surface.

For example, there are 800 molecular layers and 799 slip surfaces in a surface film with a thickness of 0.5 μm. These numerous sliding surfaces convert the original relative sliding direct contact between the two metal surfaces into relative sliding of the moly disulfide molecular layer, thereby reducing the friction factor and reducing wear. MoS2, under some special preparation conditions, can react with the metal surface under extreme conditions to form a protective film.

Chinatungsten is committed to producing molybdenum disulfide powder and would be honored to offer you our products no matter in which industry. 

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