Imagine two surfaces sliding against each other so smoothly they almost don't feel any resistance at all. This project uses tiny, 2D-material-coated beads that act like a microscopic ball-bearing system to stop surfaces from sticking. It turns a laboratory trick into a real-world lubricant that keeps parts moving without wearing down.
Friction and wear in moving parts waste 25% of global energy and shorten the lifespan of industrial components. Current lubrication cannot reach the near-zero friction levels needed for next-generation speed and efficiency.
A system of tribo-colloids consisting of 2D-material-coated particles and carrier fluids that create a network of ultra-low friction contacts.
If you are a vehicle manufacturer dealing with high CO2 emissions and energy loss—this project developed a superlubricity technology that could help reduce the 2 billion tonnes of CO2 per year caused by passenger cars. It lowers friction to a coefficient of <0.01, increasing the lifetime of engine and transmission parts.
If you are a storage hardware company dealing with physical speed limits of writing heads—this project developed a way for the writing tip to move in full contact with the disk. This allows for much higher writing speeds than current lubrication allows.
If you are a machinery producer dealing with energy waste from friction—this project developed tribo-colloids that maintain a friction coefficient of <0.01 under 10’s MPa of pressure. This reduces the 25% of global energy consumption currently lost to friction and wear.
Based on available project data, there is no information regarding the cost of production or market pricing.
Yes, the primary goal of the project is to scale superlubricity from the micrometer scale to the macroscale for real-life products.
Based on available project data, specific licensing terms or patent strategies are not disclosed.
The technology uses tribo-colloids (coated particles) and carrier fluids, suggesting it can be integrated as a high-performance boundary lubrication system.
The project runs from 2022-04-01 to 2026-09-30, indicating it is currently in the development phase.
The consortium is heavily research-oriented, consisting of 9 partners across 7 countries. With 6 universities and 2 research institutes, the academic weight is high (89%), while industrial participation is low at 11% (1 SME). This suggests the project is currently focused on fundamental technical breakthroughs rather than immediate commercial rollout.
Contact the College of the Holy & Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin
Contact us to find out how to integrate superlubricity into your hardware roadmap.
