Development and Evaluation of Near Frictionless Carbon for Shipboard Applications

Near frictionless carbon (NFC) coating, a form of amorphous carbon that has a friction coefficient of 0.001 in dry nitrogen, has been developed at the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). This coating has potentials for many applications including that ofnaval shipboard. In Phase I, UES has demonstrated the superior friction, wear and corrosion behavior of NFC coating in simulated marine environment using various substrate materials of interest, as compared to oil and grease lubricants. In Phase II, UESproposes to optimize the coating process for improved adhesion to various substrate materials by varying the deposition parameters, coating thickness and bond coatings. The coatings will be evaluated under various tribological conditions relevant toshipboard applications in simulated marine atmosphere. ANL will provide support in coating and evaluation of NFC as a subcontractor to this project. Actual shipboard components will also be coated and tested in laboratory and in service during Phase II incollaboration with navy and manufacturers of shipboard components Besides naval shipboard applications, NFC coating has potential in numerous commercial applications. Examples are: piston rings, gears, bearing components, cams and cam-roller followers,fuel injectors, air conditioning compressors.