SBIR Phase I: Low friction and high durability PTFE nanoparticle composite coating for bearings

SBIR 第一阶段：用于轴承的低摩擦、高耐用性 PTFE 纳米颗粒复合涂层

• 批准号: 1622136
• 负责人: Samuel Beckford
• 金额: $ 22.5万
• 依托单位: SurfTec, LLC
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2016
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2016-07-01 至 2017-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1622136&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SBIR; Phase; Low; friction; durability

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is a comprehensive investigation into the feasibility of using a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) nanoparticle composite coating as a lubricant in ball bearings for washdown duty electric motors. The successful transition from traditional lubricants to solid lubricants in manufacturing has tremendous implications for the US economy and the environment. Currently, annual lubrication-related maintenance costs are as high as $1 trillion, and consumption of petroleum-based lubricants is estimated to reach 43.78 million metric tons by the end of 2016. The effective implementation of this technology will reduce maintenance costs and downtime by eliminating premature bearing failure. This project will serve as a proof point for the adoption of nano-coating technologies for reducing friction and wear in manufacturing equipment. It will also reduce barriers to entry for these coatings in industries dominated by outdated lubrication practices. The total applicable market size for washdown duty electric motors is estimated to be $50 million, and a substantial near-term revenue opportunity for the proposed technology in this sector will be the focus of this effort. This beachhead opportunity serves as an industry validation point for the proposed technology and an entry point to other industrial and manufacturing applications.The intellectual merit of this project is based on improving the mechanical properties and adhesion of PTFE coatings through the use of an adhesive polymer basecoat and a nanoparticle filler within a PTFE topcoat. This reduces friction and increases wear-life, allowing PTFE coatings to be used in applications from which they have historically been precluded due to high wear and delamination. Preliminary results show that the proposed coating exhibits a two thousand-fold improvement in wear-life over virgin PTFE. The goal of the proposed research and development work is the optimization of the coating chemical composition and deposition parameters to maximize the performance in rolling element applications. These parameters play a critical role in the wear, vibration, and friction that occurs in coated bearings. Benchtop tribological tests will be performed to measure these properties under accelerated wear testing conditions and provide feedback during the optimization process. A thorough understanding of the process-structure-property relationship of the proposed coating will lead to new scientific knowledge which will be disseminated through applicable journals and trade publications. The successful completion of the proposed work will result in PTFE-lubricated ball bearings with a wear-life which is more than 50% improved as compared to grease-lubricated bearings.

这个小企业创新研究第一阶段项目是对聚四氟乙烯（PTFE）纳米颗粒复合涂层作为冲洗型电动机滚珠轴承润滑剂的可行性进行全面调查。在制造业中，从传统润滑剂到固体润滑剂的成功过渡对美国经济和环境产生了巨大的影响。目前，每年与润滑相关的维护成本高达1万亿美元，预计到2016年底，石油基润滑剂的消费量将达到4378万公吨。该技术的有效实施将通过消除轴承过早失效来降低维护成本和停机时间。该项目将作为采用纳米涂层技术减少制造设备摩擦和磨损的证明点。它还将减少这些涂料在过时润滑实践主导的行业中的进入壁垒。冲洗型电动机的总适用市场规模估计为5000万美元，该领域拟议技术的大量近期收入机会将是这一努力的重点。这个滩头阵地的机会作为一个行业验证点的拟议技术和切入点，以其他工业和制造业的应用。该项目的智力价值是基于提高PTFE涂层的机械性能和附着力，通过使用粘合剂聚合物底涂层和纳米粒子填料在PTFE面漆。这减少了摩擦并增加了磨损寿命，使PTFE涂层能够用于历史上由于高磨损和分层而被排除在外的应用中。初步结果表明，所提出的涂层具有两千倍的改善，在原始PTFE的磨损寿命。拟议的研究和开发工作的目标是优化涂层化学成分和沉积参数，以最大限度地提高滚动元件应用的性能。这些参数在涂层轴承中发生的磨损、振动和摩擦中起着关键作用。将进行台架摩擦学试验，以测量加速磨损试验条件下的这些性能，并在优化过程中提供反馈。对所提出的涂层的工艺-结构-性能关系的透彻理解将产生新的科学知识，这些知识将通过适用的期刊和贸易出版物传播。拟议工作的成功完成将使PTFE润滑球轴承的磨损寿命比油脂润滑轴承提高50%以上。