Macro‐Superlubricity Induced by Synergistic Effect of Molybdenum Carbide/Molybdenum Disulfide Heterojunction and Conformation‐Transformable Ethylene Glycol Molecule

ABSTRACT Macroscopic solid–liquid synergistic superlubricity based on two‐dimensional (2D) materials and liquid molecules integrates the low interlayer shear strength of 2D materials with advantages of liquid superlubricity, significantly reducing friction and wear in industrial applications. However, the low load‐bearing capacity of single 2D material and the unclear synergistic superlubricity mechanism severely constrain the design of long‐lasting superlubricity systems. Herein, through innovatively introducing van der Waals interaction‐induced molybdenum carbide/molybdenum disulfide (Mo 2 CT x /MoS 2 ) heterojunction as additives in ethylene glycol (EG), this Mo 2 CT x /MoS 2 –EG superlubricity system exhibits an ultralow friction coefficient of 0.0044, an extremely low wear rate of 8.17 × 10 −10 mm 3 •N −1 •m −1 , and an ultralong lubrication life of 432 000 cycles (equal to 2160 m). Meanwhile, the maximum average contact pressure reaches 711.9 MPa. The in‐situ formed special tribofilms enriched with heterojunction and homojunction nanosheets effectively reduce the shear strength under boundary lubrication. Notably, the ultralow shear strength at the Mo 2 C‐O/EG solid–liquid interface and the unique pressure‐responsive lubrication properties of EG molecules which leads to the formation of short‐range‐ordered structures are also crucial for achieving superlubricity. This study provides a new perspective for designing novel solid–liquid synergistic superlubricity systems by utilizing heterojunction nanomaterial and has great potential for application in industrial lubrication.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Materials
Published
2026-07-17
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.74061
Primary Topic
Lubricants and Their Additives
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Macro‐Superlubricity Induced by Synergistic Effect of Molybdenum Carbide/Molybdenum Disulfide Heterojunction and Conformation‐Transformable Ethylene Glycol Molecule

Shaowen Dong, Wei Song, Jinjin Li, Xiaoyang Ma et al.
Advanced Materials
Lubricants and Their Additives
article

Macro‐Superlubricity Induced by Synergistic Effect of Molybdenum Carbide/Molybdenum Disulfide Heterojunction and Conformation‐Transformable Ethylene Glycol Molecule

Shaowen Dong, Wei Song, Jinjin Li, Xiaoyang Ma, Zhuolin Wu, Rui Zhang, Jianbin Luo, Yongfeng Yang
article en

Abstract

ABSTRACT Macroscopic solid–liquid synergistic superlubricity based on two‐dimensional (2D) materials and liquid molecules integrates the low interlayer shear strength of 2D materials with advantages of liquid superlubricity, significantly reducing friction and wear in industrial applications. However, the low load‐bearing capacity of single 2D material and the unclear synergistic superlubricity mechanism severely constrain the design of long‐lasting superlubricity systems. Herein, through innovatively introducing van der Waals interaction‐induced molybdenum carbide/molybdenum disulfide (Mo 2 CT x /MoS 2 ) heterojunction as additives in ethylene glycol (EG), this Mo 2 CT x /MoS 2 –EG superlubricity system exhibits an ultralow friction coefficient of 0.0044, an extremely low wear rate of 8.17 × 10 −10 mm 3 •N −1 •m −1 , and an ultralong lubrication life of 432 000 cycles (equal to 2160 m). Meanwhile, the maximum average contact pressure reaches 711.9 MPa. The in‐situ formed special tribofilms enriched with heterojunction and homojunction nanosheets effectively reduce the shear strength under boundary lubrication. Notably, the ultralow shear strength at the Mo 2 C‐O/EG solid–liquid interface and the unique pressure‐responsive lubrication properties of EG molecules which leads to the formation of short‐range‐ordered structures are also crucial for achieving superlubricity. This study provides a new perspective for designing novel solid–liquid synergistic superlubricity systems by utilizing heterojunction nanomaterial and has great potential for application in industrial lubrication.

Advanced Materials
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US), Tsinghua University (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Natural Science Foundation of Beijing Municipality
Openalex Percentile: Top 15%
Lubricants and Their Additives
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