In-Situ formed Titanium-MXene nanomembrane as ultrathin van-der-Waals lubricant

YS Geng and H Chen and S Luo and Y Teng and QF He and LP Zhang and ZB Zhang and ZY Yang and YY Shi and Q Wang and J Yang and J Fan and Y Yang, MATERIALS TODAY, 88, 328-337 (2025).

DOI: 10.1016/j.mattod.2025.06.044

High-performance solid lubricants are pivotal in curbing frictional energy consumption and wear-related emissions under high-temperature and high-load conditions. However, under nanoscale tribological contacts, layered two-dimensional materials may lose their incommensurate van der Waals (vdW) interfacial alignment in extreme environments, leading to frictional degradation. Here, we report the scalable fabrication of large-area, cost-effective Ti-MXene hybrid nanomembranes (<50 nm thick), composed of in-situ chemically bonded metallic Ti and Ti3C2Tx MXene nanocrystals. Our nanomembranes exhibit outstanding isotropic tribological properties within a temperature range spanning from room- temperature to 573 K under high contact pressures. They demonstrate near-zero wear with a wear rate below 10(-9) mm(3)/Nm, and an ultra-low coefficient of friction below 0.01, achieving mesoscale superlubricity even at contact pressures exceeding 10 GPa and elevated temperatures (473-573 K) under atomic force microscopy indentation. These remarkable properties stem from the unique nanostructure, exceptional strength and high ductility of our nanomembranes, along with an in-situ nano- oxidation and carbon migration initiated by MXene decomposition during wear. In-situ experiments and multiscale simulations reveal that the confinement of MXene within the Ti nanocrystals not only imparts self- lubricating behavior but also enhances wear resistance by lowering the energy barrier of the tribochemical protection. Furthermore, these nanomembranes function as ultrathin vdW-enabled solid lubricants, effectively reducing friction and wear on various technologically important engineering materials, such as titanium alloy, stainless steel, and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).

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