• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.49-55
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• 2023

Currently, the demand for green technologies toward a sustainable future is rapidly increasing due to growing concern over environmental issues. Methanol is biodegradable and can provide clean combustion to reduce sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide emissions, and therefore it is a candidate fuel for marine engines. However, the effect of methanol on tribological characteristic degradation should be addressed for methanol-fueled engines. In this study, the methanol addition effects on tribological characteristic degradation is experimentally assessed using a pin-on-disk tribo-tester. Ni-based alloy is used as a target material due to its broad applicability as an engine component material. For a lubricant, engine oil with and without methanol are used. The tests are conducted for up to 10,000 cycles under boundary lubrication while the change in friction force is monitored. Additionally, the wear rate is determined based on laser scanning confocal microscope data. An additional test in which methanol is added at regular intervals is performed with an aim to directly observe its effect on friction. Overall, the friction coefficient increases slightly with increasing methanol concentration. Furthermore, the wear rate of the pin and disk increase significantly with methanol addition. The results also indicate that the friction increases instantaneously with methanol addition at the contacting interface. These findings may be useful for better understanding the methanol effect on the tribological characteristics of Ni-based alloys for methanol-fueled engines with improved performance.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.196-202
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• 2011

In this paper, a series of alkyl succinic acid esters for base oil were synthesized by condensation reaction of succinic anhydride and fatty alcohol. The structures of the synthesized esters were confirmed by $^1H-NMR$, FT-IR spectrum and GC analysis. Basic properties of esters such as kinematic viscosity (KV), refractive index (RI), total acid number (TAN) and pour points were measured and lubricating properties such as SRV wear scar diameter (SRV WSD), fraction coefficient (COF) and 4-ball wear (4-ball WSD) were also evaluated. As the results of basic properties, KV, RI and pour point of synthetic esters increased as the carbon chain of the esters increased. Measurement value of total acid number (TAN) was indicated between 0.2~4 mgKOH/g, and that metal working fluids and pressure working oils are acceptable to use as base oil. Also, lubricating properties of the esters showed as follows: 0.391~0.689 mm of SRV WSD, 0.110~0.138 of SRV COF and 0.49~0.55 mm of 4-ball WSD depended on the structure of the esters. In a comparison on the lubrication capacity of the SRV test based on polyester TMPTO, SRV WSD result showed that a better performance caused by the alkyl group. On the other hand, SRV COF test was not influenced of the alkyl group which the capacity of the lubricant was sightly diminished than the comparison material, regardless of the alkyl group.