Graphene-Based Nanomaterials as Lubricant Additives: A Review

Reducing friction and wear by improving the tribological properties of liquid lubricants with additives is one of the most important research goals in tribology. Graphene is a typical two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterial, which has outstanding tribological performance when used as an additive in lubricants. In the past decade, various graphene-based nanomaterials have been fabricated by different methods and investigated as lubricant additives. This review aims at comprehensively overviewing the state-of-the-art graphene-based nanomaterials used as lubricant additives. Firstly, the synthesis methods and material structure are reviewed. Subsequently, the possible mechanism of graphene-based nanomaterials on friction-reduction and anti-wear was briefly discussed. Secondly, tribological properties of various graphene-based nanomaterials as lubricant additives were reviewed and discussed. Additionally, the applications of graphene-based nanomaterials in different lubricating scenarios are also discussed. Finally, challenges and future prospects of graphene-based lubricant additives are proposed.