Cellulose nanocrystals in lubricants

Last year, we reported on the value of cellulose nanocrystals in water-based lubricants. A new publication by Li et al. from the Wuhan University of Technology has shown that these results can be replicated in oil-based lubricants. Again, it was shown that with only 2% cellulose nanocrystals, the coefficient of friction decreased by 30% compared to the control which in this case was a polyalphaolefin (PAO)-based oil rather than water. These results were obtained with cellulose nanocrystals grafted with stearoyl chains, but some value was obtained with unmodified cellulose nanocrystals as well. As shown in the images above, wear was decreased significantly.

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For more information, please consult the full article: Friction reduction and viscosity modification of cellulose nanocrystals as biolubricant additives in polyalphaolefin oil.