Tribology system

Abstract

A device comprises a tribological assembly comprising a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other, the assembly having a silver alloy surface and an additive lubricant comprising at least one component of formula (Ia) or (II): MxNOy (Ia) wherein M is Ca, V, Sb, Ni or Ag, x (M: N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 2, and x (M: N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 2. And y (O: N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8; mxSiOy (II) where M is Mg or Al, x (M: Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and y (O: Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6, said device being a sealed constant pressure device.

Description

[0001] CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0002] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Patent Application No. 17 / 900,520, filed on August 31, 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0003] The present disclosure relates to a tribological system for limiting lubricant usage, an apparatus including the system, and methods of forming the same. Background Art

[0004] Many assemblies and systems have friction between various components. Friction can generate unwanted particles, which can further negatively affect sensitive components on the system, such as by shorting out electrical circuits. Although lubricants or substances designed to minimize or eliminate friction have been used for centuries, lubricants are generally not suitable for use in combination with open electronic circuits, in low-pressure systems, under vacuum conditions, etc. Summary of the invention

[0005] In at least one embodiment, a device is disclosed. The device may include a tribological assembly, the tribological assembly including a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other, the assembly having a silver alloy surface and an additive lubricant, the additive lubricant including at least one component of formula (Ia) or (II):

[0006] M x NO y (Ia),

[0007] in

[0008] M is Ca, V, Sb, Ni or Ag,

[0009] x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 2, and

[0010] y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8;

[0011] M x SiO y (II),

[0012] in

[0013] M is Mg or Al,

[0014] x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and

[0015] y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6,

[0016] The device is a sealed constant pressure device.

[0017] The additive lubricant may further include at least one compound of formula (III):

[0018] M x CrO y (III),

[0019] in

[0020] M is any transition metal,

[0021] x(M:Cr ratio) is any value between 0.1 and 2, and

[0022] y(O:Cr ratio) is any value between 1 and 6.

[0023] The additive lubricant may include a stripping material. The additive lubricant may also include boron nitride. The additive lubricant may include a compound of formula (Ia), wherein M is Ca or Sb. The tribological assembly may be located gravitationally upstream of one or more exposed electronic contacts. The device may also include an external circuit connected to the first mechanical component and the second mechanical component and configured to generate Joule heating to increase the viscosity of the additive, thereby embedding friction-generated particles in the additive. The device may further include a printed circuit board.

[0024] In another embodiment, a vacuum device is disclosed. The device may include one or more exposed electronic contacts; and a tribological assembly, the tribological assembly including a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other, the assembly having a nickel phosphide surface and an additive lubricant, the additive lubricant including at least one component of formula (I) or (III):

[0025] M x NO y (I),

[0026] in

[0027] M is any transition metal,

[0028] x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 10, and

[0029] y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 4;

[0030] M x CrO y (III),

[0031] in

[0032] M is any transition metal,

[0033] x(M:Cr ratio) is any value between 0.1 and 2, and

[0034] y(O:Cr ratio) is any value between 1 and 6,

[0035] The device is a sealed vacuum device.

[0036] The additive lubricant may include one compound of formula (I) and one compound of formula (III) in a 2:1 ratio.

[0037] The device may also include at least one compound of formula (II):

[0038] M x SiO y (II),

[0039] in

[0040] M is Mg or Al,

[0041] x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and

[0042] y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6.

[0043] The device may also include an external circuit connected to the first mechanical component and the second mechanical component and configured to generate Joule heating to temporarily reduce the viscosity of the additive, thereby embedding friction-generated particles within the additive. The additive may include V6N2O 16 The additive may further comprise a solid release material. The additive may be electrically insulating.

[0044] In yet another embodiment, a vacuum seal assembly is disclosed. The assembly may include a tribological surface region, the tribological surface region including a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other, and an additive lubricant in contact with the tribological surface region, the additive lubricant being embedded in a friction-generated particulate material in the tribological surface region, the additive lubricant including at least one component of formula (I):

[0045] M x NO y (I),

[0046] in

[0047] M is any transition metal, Ca or Sb,

[0048] x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 10, and

[0049] y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8.

[0050] The assembly may include a silver alloy surface. The assembly may include a nickel phosphide surface. The assembly may further include at least one compound of formula (II):

[0051] M x SiO y (II),

[0052] in

[0053] M is Mg or Al,

[0054] x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and

[0055] y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6.

[0056] The assembly may further include one or more exposed electronic contacts. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0057] FIG1 shows a schematic diagram of a prior art contact surface in which undesirable particulate material is generated by excessive friction;

[0058] Figure 2A A schematic diagram showing a non-limiting example of a system disclosed herein in a first state according to one or more embodiments;

[0059] Figure 2B A schematic diagram showing a non-limiting example of a system disclosed herein in a second state according to one or more embodiments;

[0060] Figure 2C A schematic diagram showing a non-limiting example of a system disclosed herein in a third state according to one or more embodiments;

[0061] Figure 3 A schematic diagram showing another non-limiting example of a system disclosed herein in a third state according to one or more embodiments;

[0062] Figure 4 A schematic diagram showing a non-limiting exemplary apparatus including a tribological system described herein;

[0063] Figures 5A-5C Non-limiting examples of interface reactivity indicators are shown, which depict Figure 5A The moderately reactive interface (Ag-S) Figure 5B The non-reactive interface (S-Ne) and Figure 5C Highly reactive interface (Ag-F2) in

[0064] Figure 6 Scatter plots showing the reactivity of screened materials to Ag, Au, and SiO2;

[0065] Figure 7 Scatter plots showing the aggregate reactivity of the screened materials to Ag, Au, and SiO2; and

[0066] Figure 8 Shown is the optimized decision tree identifying the chemical space best suited for high reactivity with Ag and low reactivity with Au and SiO2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0067] Embodiments of the present disclosure are described herein. However, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely examples and that other embodiments may present various alternative forms. The drawings are not necessarily to scale; some features may be enlarged or minimized to show the details of a particular component. Therefore, the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein should not be interpreted as limiting, but only as a representative basis for teaching those skilled in the art to utilize the present embodiments in various ways. As will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art, the various features illustrated and described with reference to any of the figures may be combined with the features illustrated in one or more other figures to derive embodiments that are not explicitly illustrated or described. The combination of illustrated features provides representative embodiments for typical applications. However, specific applications or implementations may require various combinations and modifications of features consistent with the teachings of the present disclosure.

[0068] Except in the examples or where otherwise explicitly stated, all numerical quantities in this specification indicating the amount of material or reaction conditions and / or conditions of use should be understood to be modified by the word "approximately" to describe the broadest scope of the present invention. It is usually preferred to implement within the specified numerical limits. In addition, unless explicitly indicated to the contrary, percentages, "parts" and ratio values ​​are by weight; a group or class of materials is described as suitable or preferred for a given use associated with the present invention, meaning that a mixture of any two or more members of the group or class is also suitable or preferred; describing ingredients in chemical terms refers to the ingredients when added to any combination specified in the specification, and does not necessarily exclude chemical interactions between the ingredients of the mixture after mixing.

[0069] The first definition of an acronym or other abbreviation applies to all subsequent uses of the same abbreviation in this document and to normal grammatical variations of the initially defined abbreviation. Unless expressly indicated to the contrary, measurements of a property are determined by the same techniques as previously or later mentioned for the same property.

[0070] It must also be noted that as used in the specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. For example, reference to a component in the singular is intended to include a plural number of components.

[0071] As used herein, the term "substantially", "usually" or "approximately" means that the amount or value involved may be a specified specific value or other values ​​in the vicinity thereof. Typically, the term "approximately" indicating a specific value is intended to indicate a range within + / -5% of that value. As an example, the phrase "about 100" means 100+ / -5, i.e. 95 to 105. Typically, when the term "approximately" is used, it is expected that similar results or effects according to the present invention can be obtained within the range of + / -5% of the indicated value. The term "substantially" may modify the numerical value or relative feature disclosed or claimed in the present disclosure. In such a case, "substantially" may mean that the numerical value or relative feature it modifies is within ±0%, 0.1%, 0.5%, 1%, 2%, 3%, 4%, 5% or 10% of the numerical value or relative feature.

[0072] It should also be appreciated that integer ranges explicitly include all integers therebetween. For example, integer ranges 1-10 explicitly include 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. Similarly, ranges 1 to 100 include 1, 2, 3, 4, .... 97, 98, 99, 100. Similarly, when any range is proposed, the intermediate value of the difference between the upper and lower limits divided by 10 as an increment can be taken as an alternative upper or lower limit. For example, if the range is 1.1. to 2.1, the following numerical values ​​1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9 and 2.0 can be selected as lower or upper limits. Similarly, as long as an integer list is provided herein, it should also be appreciated that the list of integers explicitly includes the scope of any two integers in the list.

[0073] In the examples given herein, the concentration, temperature and reaction conditions (e.g., pressure, pH, flow, etc.) may be implemented as + or -50% of the values ​​shown, rounded to or intercepted to two significant figures of the values ​​provided in the example. In a refinement, the concentration, temperature and reaction conditions (e.g., pressure, pH, flow, etc.) may be implemented as + or -30% of the values ​​shown, rounded to or intercepted to two significant figures of the values ​​provided in the example. In another refinement, the concentration, temperature and reaction conditions (e.g., pressure, pH, flow, etc.) may be implemented as + or -10% of the values ​​shown, rounded to or intercepted to two significant figures of the values ​​provided in the example.

[0074] For all compounds represented by empirical chemical formulas with multiple letter and number subscripts (e.g., CHO), the value of the subscript may be + or -50% of the value indicated, rounded or truncated to two significant figures. For example, if CHO is indicated, then the formula is C (0.8-1.2) H (1.6-2.4) O (0.8-1.2) In one refinement, the subscript value may be + or - 30% of the indicated value, rounded or truncated to two significant figures. In another refinement, the subscript value may be + or - 20% of the indicated value, rounded or truncated to two significant figures. The terms "compound" and "composition" are used interchangeably.

[0075] The term "and / or" as used herein means that all elements of the group may be present or only one element. For example, "A and / or B" means "only A, or only B, or A and B". In the case of "only A", the term also covers the possibility that B is not present, i.e., "only A, but no B".

[0076] It is also to be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments and methods described below, as specific components and / or conditions may, of course, vary. Furthermore, the terminology used herein is used only to describe specific embodiments of the invention and is not intended to be limiting in any way.

[0077] The term "comprising" is synonymous with "including," "having," "containing," or "characterized by." These terms are inclusive and open-ended and do not exclude additional unrecited elements or method steps.

[0078] The phrase "consisting of" excludes any element, step or ingredient not specified in the claim. When this phrase appears in a clause of the body of a claim rather than immediately following the preamble, it limits only the elements listed in that clause; it does not exclude other elements from the claim as a whole.

[0079] The phrase "consisting essentially of" limits the scope of a claim to the specified materials or steps and those that do not materially affect the basic and novel characteristics of the claimed subject matter.

[0080] With respect to the terms "comprising," "consisting of," and "consisting essentially of," when any of these three terms are used herein, the subject matter disclosed and claimed herein may include the use of either of the other two terms.

[0081] The term "one or more" means "at least one" and the term "at least one" means "one or more." The terms "one or more" and "at least one" include "plurality" as a subset.

[0082] A group or class of materials described as suitable for a given use in connection with one or more embodiments means that mixtures of any two or more members of the group or class are suitable. Describing ingredients in chemical terms refers to the ingredients when added to any combination specified in the specification, and does not necessarily preclude chemical interactions between the ingredients of the mixture once mixed. The first definition of an acronym or other abbreviation applies to all subsequent uses of the same abbreviation in this document and applies to normal grammatical variations of the initially defined abbreviation. Unless expressly indicated to the contrary, measurements of properties are determined by the same techniques as previously or later mentioned for the same property.

[0083] In various manufacturing and assembly processes, materials may need to slide against each other. In order to achieve a tight fit between sliding parts, the clearance is sometimes very small and causes large shear stresses in the contacting materials. As shown schematically in Figure 1, these stresses may lead to unwanted particle generation as material peels off from the contacting surfaces.

[0084] As can be seen in Figure 1, the first component 10 and the second component 12 slide against each other as part of an assembly 20. The contact surfaces 14 of the components 10, 12 are exposed to high forces. Due to the high force wear, wear or friction generated particles 22 are formed within the assembly 20.

[0085] The generated particles may cause problems such as mechanical blockage (e.g., clogged pipes), electrical shorts, chemical contamination, and abrasive wear of assemblies or their components. Systems with such surfaces are called tribological to refer to the interaction of the surfaces in relative motion.

[0086] When two or more surfaces meet one another, whether liquid-liquid, liquid-solid or other, tribological effects are realized. Surfaces can interact with one another in many ways, and tribological interactions can take the form of friction, surfaces sticking to one another, surfaces being held apart from one another, and stress or strain at the point of contact of the surfaces.

[0087] Tribology is not simple because surfaces are complex. Tribology is of high importance in applications involving lubricants / oils and solid components, such as in industrial machinery and automotive parts. The presence of multiple phases in a mechanical shear environment can also cause surfaces to attract contaminants, which adds more complex dynamics on top of the diversity of materials, chemicals, and / or thickness of these materials used in the system.

[0088] In addition, surfaces are not flat, although they are often depicted as such. In reality, surfaces are rough. Roughness can range from visible to nanometers and angstroms. Surface roughness plays an important role and may affect the contact area of ​​the surface, contact stress on the surface, lubrication path, contact angle between solid and liquid surfaces, chemical compatibility, shear strength, and lubrication properties of the surface.

[0089] The contact of multiple surfaces creates friction, i.e., the force between two components in contact with each other. Friction describes the resistance to relative motion. Friction occurs at the interface between two surfaces in relative motion. Mechanical wear is the interaction that occurs when two surfaces meet. Mechanical wear is affected by elastic and plastic deformation of the surfaces.

[0090] The typical solution to prevent the generation of debris and unwanted particles during a friction event is to add a lubricant at the contact point between the first component and the second component, which causes the lubricant surface to deform rather than the underlying material, thereby avoiding particle generation. However, in some cases, high-performance lubricants are not allowed or available due to chemical restrictions or other application-specific limitations, such as:

[0091] In low pressure or vacuum environments, lubricants with low outgassing may be required to ensure that the pressure in the seal environment is constant throughout the life of the device.

[0092] Inorganic lubricants may be preferred to minimize reactivity with other components of the system.

[0093] In electronic devices, lubricants may be required to be electrically insulating to prevent particles of the lubricant from causing short circuits in the device. Alternatively, lubricants may be required not to have a large dielectric constant to minimize potential damage to electronic devices from electrostatic discharge (ESD).

[0094] If there is a substrate (printed circuit board (PCB), glass socket, ceramic, hybrid) and ultimately a surface mounted die assembly near the assembly joint, it may be required that the lubricant does not contain materials that are corrosive to exposed silicon, silicon oxide, aluminum and / or gold contacts. This requirement is particularly strong in the case where the device is subjected to high temperature processing steps (above 50°C), which may degrade any lubricant present and accelerate unwanted chemical reactions.

[0095] Depending on the contact materials, there may be side reactions between the lubricant and the base material which may be undesirable.

[0096] Therefore, an alternative way is needed to minimize or eliminate the generation of wear-generated particles as part of an assembly or system, especially an assembly or system containing circuitry that may be susceptible to undesirable contact with particles.

[0097] In one or more embodiments, a tribological system or assembly is disclosed. The system or assembly is a mechanical system including at least two mechanical components. The tribological system is a system including at least two contacting components or assemblies having interacting tribological surfaces.

[0098] The system may have environmental restrictions regarding the use of lubricants. For example, the system may be restricted to no outgassing, no chemical reaction, no generation of electrostatic discharge, thermal stability requirements, etc. or a combination thereof.

[0099] The system may include, or be part of, a high vacuum and / or low pressure device. High vacuum means that the pressure is low enough so that the mean free path of the molecules in the residual gas is greater than the size of the vacuum container. High vacuum can be a vacuum with a pressure of about 100 mPa to 100 nPa. Low pressure can refer to a pressure much less than atmospheric pressure. Low pressure can refer to a pressure less than about 10 bar. The system can also have a pressure above atmospheric pressure. Medium pressure can refer to about 10 bar to about 100 bar. High pressure can refer to greater than about 100 bar.

[0100] The system or device may have a pressure equal to or greater than about 1013,25 hPa. The system or device may be internally designed to have a "low vacuum" pressure as defined in ISO 3529.

[0101] The system may be constructed and / or required to maintain a certain pressure value or pressure range throughout its life, whether it is vacuum, high vacuum, low pressure or above average pressure. The system or device may be a constant pressure system or device, which refers to the requirement to maintain the same pressure during the life of the device or system.

[0102] The system may include one or more exposed electronic devices, such as circuits or circuit systems, which may be susceptible to malfunction / failure if contamination occurs. The system may include one or more exposed electrical contacts. The electronic devices and / or other sensitive components may be spatially removed from the tribological component, additives, external circuits, or a combination thereof. The electronic devices and / or other sensitive components may not be in contact with the tribological contact area or may not be in direct contact with the tribological contact area. The electronic devices and / or other sensitive components may be located near the tribological system so that the electronic devices and / or other sensitive components may be exposed to particulate matter generated by the friction of the tribological component. The electronic devices and / or other sensitive components may be located downstream of the tribological component in terms of gravity. The tribological component may be located upstream of the electronic devices and / or other sensitive components in terms of gravity.

[0103] The systems or assemblies disclosed herein may include or be part of a device having silver-plated metal or coating, silver alloy surfaces, and / or nickel phosphide (NiP) surfaces, and / or another component or material requiring lubrication, although the system also has at least one or more of the above-mentioned environmental limitations. For example, the system or device may include silver-plated metal on at least one component in the tribological area and one or more exposed electrical contacts. Alternatively, the system or device may include a silver alloy and a low voltage requirement. In another non-limiting example, the system or device may include a NiP surface, exposed circuitry, and a requirement for no venting.

[0104] The system may include a first component and a second component. The first component has a first contact surface or tribological contact surface. The second component has a first contact surface or tribological contact surface. The first and second tribological surfaces form a tribological contact area shared by the first component and the second component. The components may have additional contact surfaces.

[0105] The components may share at least one, one, two, at least two or more than one contact surface and tribological contact area. The system may include additional components each having at least one contact surface. Contact surfaces and contact areas may be shared between components. The number of components may be 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 or more. The tribological system may be an industrial machinery system, an automotive system or a sensing system. The tribological component or the first and second components may be a bearing, a seal, a pin, a spring, a gear, a cam, a tappet, a piston ring, a brush, a cutting tool, a forming tool, etc., or a combination thereof.

[0106] The first component and the second component can move relative to each other. The relative movement generates friction, which may produce friction-induced particle generation. The system may therefore include a plurality of friction-inducing particles. The first component and the second component may be static in some cases.

[0107] In addition, the system may include an additive. The additive may be applied to one or more contact surfaces (tribological contact areas) of the first component, the second component, etc. The additive may be applied along the entire length of the contact surface, a portion of the contact surface, or extend beyond the contact surface so that the additive is applied to the contact and non-contact surfaces of the first component, the second component, or both. The additive may cover the entire or partial range of the tribological surface area. The additive may form a film between the contact surfaces of the components.

[0108] The additive may include a lubricant or a substance used to minimize friction, heat and / or wear. The lubricant may include a boundary lubricant, a mixed lubricant or a full film lubricant.

[0109] The additive may be chemically inert. The additive may be inert to silicon, silicon oxide, aluminum and / or gold contacts. The additive may be electrically insulating.

[0110] The additive may be subjected to a treatment having one or more steps. The treatment may include the steps of Joule heating or resistive, resistance or ohmic heating or induction heating, or the process of passing an electric current or magnetic current through a conductor to generate heat. The treatment may include increasing, raising, maintaining the temperature of the component, system, additive until a predetermined temperature is reached. The treatment may also include the step of stopping heating to reduce the temperature of the component, system, additive until a second predetermined temperature is reached.

[0111] The system may therefore include an external circuit to produce Joule heating. The external circuit may generate a constant voltage to generate a large direct current. Alternatively, the external circuit may generate a high frequency alternating current configured to minimize damage to other electrical components of the system. The voltage or current may be generated for a predetermined amount of time. The external circuit may be connected to components of the system.

[0112] The additive may have a high electrical resistance so that the treatment does not damage the additive and / or the surface. The additive may have a high electrical resistance to maximize Joule heating localized to the tribological contact surface. The additive may be a resistive additive or a material that does not readily allow electrical current. The additive may be a strippable or peelable material or a layered material that can be separated into individual pieces.

[0113] The additive may be a liquid, a gas, a gel, or a solid. The additive may be a solid inorganic lubricant in at least one state. The additive may have more than one state in the systems described herein.

[0114] The additive may be heated by the treatment and cooled after the treatment. The additive may be a substance of such a nature that, after application to the one or more tribological regions and subjecting to the treatment, the additive may embed, encapsulate, surround, engulf, surround, absorb, etc. and retain, hold, fix, etc. the one or more friction inducing particles between the tribological contacts / in the tribological contact region. The particles are retained within the additive so that the particles do not fall out, do not move within the system, and do not affect the rest of the assembly or system, such as electronics. The additive may be configured to capture particles one or more times. The additive may be configured to capture particles once, repeatedly, continuously, discontinuously, in a random pattern, or in a regular pattern.

[0115] The friction inducing particles, granules or particulates may be generated once, twice or multiple times in the tribological contact area. The friction inducing particles may be metallic, non-metallic or both. The friction inducing particles may be of various sizes, shapes and / or compositions.

[0116] The additive can be a polymer with a glass transition temperature or melting point between about 25 to 250, 50 to 200, or 75 to 150°C so that the treatment causes the polymer to flow around any particles generated in the contact area to trap the particles in place after the treatment is completed and the polymer cools. The glass transition temperature may be about, at least about, or at most about 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125, 130, 135, 140, 145, 150, 155, 160, 165, 170, 175, 180, 185, 190, 195, 200, 205, 210, 215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240, 245, or 250°C.

[0117] The additive can be a non-polymeric material having a melting temperature of about 25 and 250, 50 and 200, or 75 and 150° C. The melting temperature can be about, at least about, or at most about 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90, 95, 100, 105, 110, 115, 120, 125, 130, 135, 140, 145, 150, 155, 160, 165, 170, 175, 180, 185, 190, 195, 200, 205, 210, 215, 220, 225, 230, 235, 240, 245, or 250° C.

[0118] Similarly, for polymer additives, the treatment can cause the additive to reach and / or exceed the melting temperature so that the flow characteristics of the additive can capture particles. After the treatment is terminated, the additive can cool and solidify or become gel-like to remain in the tribological zone.

[0119] The additive may have an initial viscosity or a first viscosity at which the additive is applied to the system. The additive may have a second viscosity or a viscosity at an elevated temperature (melting temperature, glass transition temperature) generated by the process described herein. The additive may have a third viscosity at a temperature after the process has been stopped. The third viscosity may be the final viscosity of the additive. The third viscosity may be the viscosity of the cooled additive. The third viscosity may be equal to the first viscosity, having a higher or lower value than the first viscosity. The first and third viscosities are higher than the second viscosity. Viscosity may refer to dynamic viscosity or kinematic viscosity.

[0120] The additive, the system, or both may have a first, second, and third state. In the first state, the additive may be a material having a first viscosity. In the first state, the additive may be applied to the tribological region. In the first state, the additive may be a solid. For example, the additive may be a polymer as described above. In the first state, the polymer may be a material below the glass transition temperature.

[0121] In the second state, the additive can be subjected to the above-mentioned Joule heating and can reach and / or exceed the glass transition temperature. The polymer can be transformed into a rubbery state, flow or viscous flow. The polymer can become a flowing material with a second viscosity. As discussed herein, the second viscosity enables the additive to capture any particles in the tribological region. In the second state, the additive can be heated by Joule heating until the additive becomes at least partially melted.

[0122] In the third state, Joule heating can be stopped, the polymer cools, and the polymer properties change so that the polymer has a third viscosity different from the second viscosity. The third viscosity can be lower than, higher than, or equal to the first viscosity. As discussed herein, the third viscosity enables the additive to retain any particles in the tribological region.

[0123] Figures 2A-2C A non-limiting example of a system described herein is shown in a first, second, and third state. Figure 2A , the system is depicted as a first state. System 120 includes a first component 110 having a first contact surface 115 and a second contact surface 116. System 120 includes a second component 112 having a first contact surface 115' and a second contact surface 116'. System 120 includes two tribological contact areas 114 between components 110 and 112. System 120 also includes an external circuit 124 configured to provide Joule heating to an additive 126. In the first state, additive 126 is applied to the tribological contact area or surface 114. In the first state, first component 110 and second component 112 can move relative to each other, thereby generating friction to produce particles 122. In the first state, external circuit 124 can be active, activated or inactive, deactivated.

[0124] Figure 2B The system is shown in a second state. After activating the external circuit 124 to generate an electric current, the additive 126 can be heated above the glass transition temperature in the case where the additive is a polymer. Alternatively, the additive can be heated above its melting temperature. Alternatively or additionally, in the second state, Joule heating can eliminate volatile components generated by the additive, such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and thereby prevent outgassing from the lubricant after assembly.

[0125] exist Figure 2C In the third state depicted in FIG, the external circuit 124 can be deactivated, cooling the additive 126 to an additive state where the flow characteristics of the additive facilitate capturing and / or retaining particles 122. The particles 122 can be trapped within the additive. The particles 122 can be attached to the tribological region via the additive 126. In the third state, the additive with the captured particles can harden and become less viscous in time. In the third state, the additive can be a gel, a solid, or both.

[0126] The particles 126 may be generated in the first state, the second state, the third state, or a combination thereof.

[0127] In a non-limiting example, in the first state, the system and / or the additive can be heated to a predetermined temperature. The predetermined temperature is a temperature at which undesirable volatile compounds are removed from the system. The system and / or the additive can be heated to the predetermined temperature once, twice, more than once, multiple times at regular or irregular intervals.

[0128] In another non-limiting example, the additive can be a solid having a first temperature and a first viscosity. In a second state, the additive can be heated to at least the melting temperature of the additive so that the additive has flow characteristics that capture unwanted particles. The heating can be provided by Joule heating of an external circuit. In the second state, the additive can become more fluid-like and less viscous, having a second viscosity lower than the first viscosity. In the second state, the additive can capture particles. In a third state, the external circuit can be disconnected or disabled, and the additive can cool and become a solid or gel, having a third temperature and a third viscosity. The first and third temperatures, viscosities, or both can be approximately equal, the same, or different. The second temperature is higher than the first temperature and the third temperature, respectively. The second viscosity is lower than the first viscosity and the third viscosity, respectively.

[0129] Figure 3 The system disclosed herein is shown in a third state with a single tribological contact area 114 between a first component 110 and a second component 112. The first component has a tribological contact surface 115. The second component has a tribological contact surface 115'.

[0130] A device, component, or assembly is disclosed that includes a tribological system or assembly as described herein. The device can be a low pressure device, a vacuum sealed device, a device without exhaust requirements, or another environmental requirement as described herein. The device can include a tribological component and an additive that forms a tribological surface area. The additive can include or embed particulate matter. The device can include an external circuit as described herein. Alternatively, the external circuit can be removed after assembly. A non-limiting example of the device is schematically shown in Figure 4 middle.

[0131] from Figure 4 As can be seen in the diagram, the apparatus 200 may include the tribological system 120 described herein and one or more electronic devices 250. The friction-generated particulate matter 122 is captured by the additive of the system 120, thereby preventing contact between the electronic device 250 and the particulate matter 122.

[0132] A method for preventing wear-generated particle contamination of a tribological system is disclosed. The method may include introducing the above-mentioned additive and the above-mentioned external circuit into the tribological system. The introduction may include spraying the exposed surface, electroporation, drop casting, solution deposition, etc., or a combination thereof.

[0133] The method may include activating an external circuit to generate a voltage or current to provide Joule heating. The method may include heating the additive for a predetermined amount of time by Joule heating to remove volatile components, raising the temperature of the additive to above its glass transition temperature or melting temperature, or both. The method may therefore include reducing the viscosity of the additive to a point where the additive melts, becomes a liquid, becomes a flowing material, becomes a gel and / or is present in a tribological contact area where friction-generated particles are located. The method may include capturing particles in or within the additive. Subsequently, the method may include cooling the additive to a predetermined temperature by deactivating the external circuit so that the additive reaches a state capable of retaining particles.

[0134] The method may include capturing particles once, repeatedly, continuously, discontinuously, in a random pattern, in a regular pattern. The method may include activating the external circuit more than once to generate changes associated with the additive, thereby removing volatile components and / or friction-generating particles more than once.

[0135] The additives may include one or more compounds. The additives may include 100% by weight or volume of one compound. Alternatively, the additive may be a mixture of one or more compounds. The ratio of the compounds may be about, at least about, or at most about 1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4, 1:5, 1:6, 1:7, 1:8, 2:3, 5:7, 1:1:1, 1:2:3, 1:4:1, etc.

[0136] The additive may have the following composition. Alternatively, other compositions are contemplated. The following additive may be used in the above system in combination with the above external circuit or without it. Thus, the following materials may be suitable lubricants in the systems disclosed herein, with or without heating to a glass transition temperature / melting point and subsequent cooling.

[0137] The additive may include one or more nitrates of formula (I), (Ia), silicates of formula (II), chromates of formula (III). The additive may include one or more of the following alone or in combination with each other or with one or more compounds of formula (I), (Ia), (II) and / or (III):

[0138] With approximately The peeling energy of boron nitride (BN) is about The exfoliation energy of CsAgO, barium chromate (BaCrO4), graphite, graphene, graphite oxide, graphene oxide, nitrates without transition metals, hydrated magnesium silicate, and MXene materials such as TiCx. MXene phase (MAX phase lacking A atoms) is formed by m AX n (m=n+1) Exfoliable layered carbides and nitrides derived from the removal of "A" cations in the "MAX phase". n is typically between 1 and 4, and X is carbon and / or nitrogen.

[0139] The additive may include a compound having formula (I):

[0140] M x NO y (I)

[0141] in

[0142] M is any transition metal, Ca or Sb,

[0143] x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 10, and

[0144] y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8.

[0145] In formula (I), M can be an element from the following periodic table groups: IB, II.B, III.B, IV.B, VB, VI.B, VII.B, VIII.B, II.A or VA. M can be Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Cd, La, Hf, Ta, W, Re, Os, Ir, Pt, Au, Ac, Rf, Dd, Sg, Bh, Hs, Mt, Ds, Rg, Cn, lanthanides, actinides, Ca or Sb. In a non-limiting example, M can be Ag, so that the compound of formula (I) is The stripping energy of AgNO2.

[0146] In Formula (I), x can be about, at least about, or at most about 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, 2, 2.25, 2.5, 2.75, 3, 3.25, 3.5, 3.75, 4, 4.25, 4.5, 4.75, 5, 5.25, 5.5, 5.75, 6, 6.25, 6.5, 6.75, 7, 7.25, 7.5, 7.75, 8, 8.25, 8.5, 8.75, 9, 9.25, 9.5, 9.75, or 10. x can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein, for example, y can be 0.5-10.

[0147] In formula (I), y can be about, at least about, or at most about 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10. y can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein, for example, 1-4.

[0148] The additive may include a compound having formula (Ia):

[0149] M x NO y (Ia)

[0150] in

[0151] M is Ca, V, Sb, Ni or Ag,

[0152] x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 2, and

[0153] y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8.

[0154] In Formula (la), x can be about, at least about, or at most about 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, 1, 1.25, 1.5, 1.75, or 2. x can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein.

[0155] In Formula (Ia), y can be about, at least about, or at most about 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8. y can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein.

[0156] The additive may include a compound having formula (II):

[0157] M x SiO y (II)

[0158] in

[0159] M is Mg or Al,

[0160] x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and

[0161] y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6.

[0162] In formula (II), x can be about, at least about, or at most about 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, or 2.0. x can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein.

[0163] In formula (II), y can be about, at least about, or at most about 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5, 5, 5.5, or 6. y can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein.

[0164] The compound of formula (II) may be an anhydrous silicate.

[0165] The additive may include a compound having formula (III):

[0166] M x CrO y (III)

[0167] in

[0168] M is any transition metal,

[0169] x(M:Cr ratio) is any value between 0.1 and 2, and

[0170] y(O:Cr ratio) is any value between 1 and 6.

[0171] In formula (III), M can be an element from the following periodic table groups: IB, II.B, III.B, IV.B, VB, VI.B, VII.B or VIII.B. M can be Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Cd, La, Hf, Ta, W, Re, Os, Ir, Pt, Au, Ac, Rf, Dd, Sg, Bh, Hs, Mt, Ds, Rg, Cn, lanthanides or actinides.

[0172] In formula (III), x can be about, at least about, or at most about 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, or 2.0. x can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein.

[0173] In formula (III), y can be about, at least about, or at most about 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6. y can be any range between two numbers disclosed herein.

[0174] Experimental Section

[0175] Despite the vast chemical search space, it is not easy to see where to begin the search for materials that optimize a particular use case. The stringent conditions of the system described herein impose many of the conditions considered for the following searches.

[0176] Select two search spaces to filter:

[0177] (A) 2D inorganic materials in the Materials Cloud database (MC2D) available at https: / / www.materialscloud.org / discover / 2dstructures / dashboard / list; and

[0178] (B) All elemental, binary, and ternary non-radioactive materials in the Materials Project with a hull energy of at least 25 meV / atom (38,432 materials).

[0179] (A) 2D Inorganic Materials

[0180] 2D inorganic materials are chosen because their planes are connected by van der Waals (vdW) or similar forces and therefore slide against each other more easily to achieve the softness required in solid inorganic lubricants.

[0181] The following conditions were applied to the MC2D search to fit the restrictive environment of the system disclosed herein:

[0182] (a) not more than The bonding energy ensures peelability;

[0183] (b) Avoid elements that typically react with semiconductor contacts: halogens, such as compounds including Cl, Br, I, F; sulfur, such as sulfates; phosphates; phosphine; and gallium, as these reactions are undesirable;

[0184] (c) Avoid chemically unstable compound types in lubricant applications: selenides, tellurides, lithium-containing compounds, peroxides, and superoxides;

[0185] (d) Avoid radioactive elements;

[0186] (e) Avoid carbon;

[0187] (f) Avoid conductors to prevent short circuits in the system;

[0188] (g) avoid hydrogen containing compounds to avoid oxidation and off-gassing; and

[0189] (h) Abundance (element) must be at least 5e-8 (50 ppb).

[0190] These constraints yielded a total of 89 individual compounds, starting with Mg3Si2O9 (stripping energy ) to P, SnO and Sb (stripping energy ), some of which are listed in Table 1.

[0191] Table 1 - 2D inorganic materials that meet conditions (a)-(h) confirmed in MC2D

[0192]

[0193]

[0194] (B) Binary and ternary non-radioactive materials

[0195] The Materials Project materials database was screened for reactivity against 38,432 materials, most of which were identified as having a hull energy of at least 25 meV / atom.

[0196] Reactivity screening is the likelihood of reactivity between a composition C and a reactant R. Using the convex hull method, reactivity is calculated by examining (1) the decomposition products of the composition C + x R and (2) the relative decomposition energies of ε(x) = E(C + x R) - E(C) - x E(R) (non-positive). The most stable reaction is the one with the smallest ε, while the dilution limit is the lowest value of x with non-zero ε.

[0197] The reactivity is measured using the following two quantities based on some known material C':

[0198] (a) At which mole fraction x does the reaction occur? Higher reactivity is associated with higher values ​​of x, i.e. more reactions occur per mole unit of C (or C'). A typical indicator here is: RR stoich =x C / x C’ , where C' is the reference material and RR stands for relative reactivity.

[0199] (b) What is the relative decomposition energy ε? Higher reactivity is associated with lower ε values ​​(higher absolute values), i.e. the reaction is more energetically favorable. Typical indicators here are: RR en =ε C / ε C’ , where C' is the reference material. It can also be: RRen =(ε C′ -ε C ) / k B T, where k B is the Boltzmann constant and T is the absolute temperature.

[0200] For the reactivity screening, sulfur (S) was used as the reference material. Figures 5A-5C Displays an example standalone interface. Figure 5A The moderately reactive interface of S-Ag shows a small reactivity of 250 meV at Ag2S (which is known as "tarnish"). Figure 5B The non-reactive interface of S-Ne is shown, which does not react because neon is an inert gas. Figure 5C The highly reactive interface of Ag-F2 is shown because fluorine is extremely reactive and has a very high energy for forming silver fluoride.

[0201] By compressing the above results into a single scalar reactivity view, we identify Figure 6 The scatter plot shown in . Figure 6 The axis in represents the previously defined “responsiveness” indicator: (RR stoich +RR en )*.5, multiply by 1 for "reactive" and -1 for "non-reactive". The reference material is elemental sulfur. Figure 6 As can be seen in the figure, fluorine is very reactive, iron and neon are fairly unreactive, and sulfur is in the middle. The materials in the upper right corner of the figure are targets, corresponding to compounds that react strongly with Ag (so that they can form a stable tribological surface layer) but do not react with Au or SiO2 to prevent any degradation of the electrical components. The cost of the compounds is also taken into account and Figure 6 Shown in.

[0202] The materials in the upper right region of the diagram then become the focus because they are closest to the desired area. The reactivity index is compressed into a single index R = R1 + R2, with the goal of R Ag >1.8 and R Au / SiO2 >1. Removed materials including halogens, sulfur, selenium, tellurium, gold, and gallium. The resulting scatter plot for 667 materials is shown in Figure 7 This provides a shortlist of materials that are most likely to have the desired behavior and therefore provide the best design principles of interest.

[0203] These 667 materials were input Figure 8 Decision tree with hyperparameter optimization shown in . The validation score is 0.561 and the test score is 0.519, indicating a small amount of hyperparameter overfitting. In the plotted decision tree, darker colors correspond to higher mass scores (R1+R2). The most feasible materials that emerged are as follows:x 49 materials containing NO x 17 materials containing Cr or N and 274 materials that are originally transition metal oxides. x and NO x The compound was identified as an excellent candidate, being very suitable due to its high reactivity with Ag and low reactivity with Au and SiO2.

[0204] Although the exemplary embodiments are described above, these embodiments are not intended to describe all possible forms covered by the claims. The words used in the specification are descriptive rather than restrictive words, and it is to be understood that various changes can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. As described above, the features of various embodiments can be combined to form further embodiments of the present invention that are not clearly described or illustrated. Although various embodiments may have been described as providing advantages or taking precedence over other embodiments or prior art embodiments in terms of one or more required features, it will be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art that one or more elements or features can be sacrificed to achieve the desired overall system properties, depending on the specific application and implementation. These properties may include, but are not limited to, cost, strength, durability, life cycle cost, marketability, appearance, packaging, size, availability, weight, manufacturability, ease of assembly, etc. Therefore, if any embodiment is described as not as ideal as other embodiments or prior art embodiments in terms of one or more features, these embodiments are not outside the scope of the present disclosure and may be ideal for specific applications.

Claims

1. A device comprising: A tribological assembly comprising a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other, the assembly having a silver alloy surface and an additive lubricant, the additive lubricant comprising at least one component of formula (Ia) or (II): M x NO y (Ia), in M is Ca, V, Sb, Ni or Ag, x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 2, and y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8; M x SiO y (II), in M is Mg or Al, x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6, The device is a sealed constant pressure device.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein the additive lubricant further comprises at least one compound of formula (III): M x CrO y (III), in M is any transition metal, x(M:Cr ratio) is any value between 0.1 and 2, and y(O:Cr ratio) is any value between 1 and 6.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the additive lubricant comprises a release material.

4. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the additive lubricant further comprises boron nitride.

5. The device of claim 1, wherein the additive comprises a compound of formula (Ia), and M is Ca or Sb.

6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the tribological assembly is gravitationally located upstream of one or more exposed electronic contacts.

7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an external circuit connected to the first mechanical component and the second mechanical component and configured to generate Joule heating to increase the viscosity of the additive, thereby embedding friction-generated particles within the additive.

8. The device of claim 1, further comprising a printed circuit board.

9. A vacuum device comprising: one or more exposed electrical contacts; and A tribological assembly comprising a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other, the assembly having a nickel phosphide surface and an additive lubricant, the additive lubricant comprising at least one component of formula (I) or (III): M x NO y (I), in M is any transition metal, x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 10, and y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 4; M x CrO y (III), in M is any transition metal, x(M:Cr ratio) is any value between 0.1 and 2, and y(O:Cr ratio) is any value between 1 and 6, The device is a sealed vacuum device.

10. The device of claim 9, wherein the additive lubricant comprises a compound of formula (I) and a compound of formula (III) in a 2:1 ratio.

11. The device according to claim 9, further comprising at least one compound of formula (II): M x SiO y (II), in M is Mg or Al, x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an external circuit connected to the first mechanical component and the second mechanical component and configured to generate Joule heating to temporarily reduce the viscosity of the additive, thereby embedding friction-generated particles within the additive.

13. The device of claim 9, wherein the additive comprises V6N2O 16 .

14. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the additive further comprises a solid release material.

15. The device of claim 9, wherein the additive is electrically insulating.

16. A vacuum seal assembly comprising: A tribological surface region comprising a first mechanical component and a second mechanical component that move relative to each other and an additive lubricant in contact with the tribological surface region, the additive lubricant being embedded in a friction-generated particulate material in the tribological surface region, the additive lubricant comprising at least one component of formula (I): M x NO y (I), in M is any transition metal, Ca or Sb, x (M:N ratio) is any value between 0.25 and 10, and y(O:N ratio) is any value between 1 and 8.

17. The assembly of claim 16, wherein the assembly comprises a silver alloy surface.

18. The assembly of claim 16, wherein the assembly comprises a nickel phosphide surface.

19. The assembly according to claim 16, further comprising at least one compound of formula (II): M x SiO y (II), in M is Mg or Al, x (M:Si ratio) is any value between 0.5 and 2, and y(O:Si ratio) is any value between 2.5 and 6.

20. The assembly of claim 16, further comprising one or more exposed electronic contacts.

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