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Diamond Nanoparticles and Graphene Combination Adds Up to "Superlubricity"

posted by martyb on Sunday June 14 2015, @12:13PM   Printer-friendly
from the lucy-in-the-sky-with-nanoparticles dept.

Phoenix666 writes in with a story from gizmag.com:

Researchers from the US Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory have created a new combination material from graphene and diamonds that's able to almost entirely overcome friction. The property, known as superlubricity, is highly sought after for its potential use in a wide range of mechanical systems.

Zooming down to an atomic level, friction is caused by atoms locking together, making it difficult for them to pass over one another. It's like sliding the bases of two egg cartons over one another. They'll often get entangled together during the process.

In an attempt to create a material that all but eliminates this effect, the small team of researchers combined three key building blocks – diamond nanoparticles, a diamond-like carbon surface and numerous small patches of graphene.

[...] Combining the three materials, the Argonne National Laboratory researchers observed the graphene patches interacting with the diamond nanoparticles as they rubbed up against the diamond-like carbon surface. In essence, the graphene rolled itself around the diamond particles to create tiny ball bearing-like structures, which the researchers call nanoscrolls.

Is there anything graphene can't do?

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 14 2015, @12:23PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 14 2015, @12:23PM (#196102)

    Try our new Diamond Jubilee condoms, now with actual diamonds, graphene and superlubricity. Our high tech approach to birth control is even better than our two-tube DG Jelly (sorry about the grittiness of the diamonds tube, we should have caught that during testing).

  • (Score: 2) by kaszz on Sunday June 14 2015, @12:44PM

    by kaszz (4211) on Sunday June 14 2015, @12:44PM (#196107) Journal

    Super efficient, the womb will be permanently out of business once those lubricants osmosis into the tissue. The participants may also be out of breath permanently at a later stage. ;-)

  • (Score: 2) by arslan on Sunday June 14 2015, @10:54PM

    by arslan (3462) on Sunday June 14 2015, @10:54PM (#196272)

    Eh? Without friction you're just humping air...

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 16 2015, @01:04AM

      by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday June 16 2015, @01:04AM (#196690)

      Side pressure (moving expansion or compression, depending on whether you're a socket or a plug) is more important than friction in humping. Try putting lube inside the condom, you'll notice a world of difference thanks to less friction.