Combined ab initio and experimental study of phosphorus-based anti-wear additives interacting with iron and iron oxide

Fuente: arXiv
Salvato in:
Dettagli Bibliografici
Autori principali: Benini, Francesca, Restuccia, Paolo, Loehlé, Sophie, Arnoux, Quentin, Righi, Maria Clelia
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2025
Soggetti:
Accesso online:
Tags: Aggiungi Tag
Nessun Tag, puoi essere il primo ad aggiungerne!!
_version_ 1866909876450492416
author Benini, Francesca
Restuccia, Paolo
Loehlé, Sophie
Arnoux, Quentin
Righi, Maria Clelia
author_facet Benini, Francesca
Restuccia, Paolo
Loehlé, Sophie
Arnoux, Quentin
Righi, Maria Clelia
contents The performance of phosphorus-based lubricant additives is governed by their adsorption, stability, and reactivity at the metal interface. In this study, we investigate the adsorption behavior and tribochemical stability of three additives: Octyl Acid Phosphate (OAP), Dibutyl Hydrogen Phosphite (DBHP), and Amine Neutralized Acid Phosphate (ANAP). These additives are studied on iron and hematite surfaces using both ab initio calculations and experimental analyses on steel. Simulations revealed that ANAP exhibited the strongest adsorption on iron, followed by DBHP, while OAP showed weaker interactions, though its chemisorption was enhanced on hematite via hydrogen loss. Under tribological conditions, the DBHP phosphite dissociated more readily than the other two phosphates molecules due to its lower phosphorus coordination, as confirmed by bond order analysis. Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) measurements indicated significant differences in adsorption behavior across temperatures, with DBHP forming stable deposits, while ANAP exhibited poor retention, in agreement with ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed DBHP's strong chemisorption and molecular dissociation, leading to increased phosphorus deposition. OAP, despite forming a phosphorus-based layer, caused a reduction in Fe oxide, consistent with its hydrogen release mechanism observed in simulations. These findings highlight the critical role of molecular structure and oxidation state in tribofilm formation and stability. Understanding these interactions at the atomic level provides valuable insights for designing high-performance lubricant additives for extreme operating conditions.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2510_25620
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Combined ab initio and experimental study of phosphorus-based anti-wear additives interacting with iron and iron oxide
Benini, Francesca
Restuccia, Paolo
Loehlé, Sophie
Arnoux, Quentin
Righi, Maria Clelia
Materials Science
The performance of phosphorus-based lubricant additives is governed by their adsorption, stability, and reactivity at the metal interface. In this study, we investigate the adsorption behavior and tribochemical stability of three additives: Octyl Acid Phosphate (OAP), Dibutyl Hydrogen Phosphite (DBHP), and Amine Neutralized Acid Phosphate (ANAP). These additives are studied on iron and hematite surfaces using both ab initio calculations and experimental analyses on steel. Simulations revealed that ANAP exhibited the strongest adsorption on iron, followed by DBHP, while OAP showed weaker interactions, though its chemisorption was enhanced on hematite via hydrogen loss. Under tribological conditions, the DBHP phosphite dissociated more readily than the other two phosphates molecules due to its lower phosphorus coordination, as confirmed by bond order analysis. Quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) measurements indicated significant differences in adsorption behavior across temperatures, with DBHP forming stable deposits, while ANAP exhibited poor retention, in agreement with ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed DBHP's strong chemisorption and molecular dissociation, leading to increased phosphorus deposition. OAP, despite forming a phosphorus-based layer, caused a reduction in Fe oxide, consistent with its hydrogen release mechanism observed in simulations. These findings highlight the critical role of molecular structure and oxidation state in tribofilm formation and stability. Understanding these interactions at the atomic level provides valuable insights for designing high-performance lubricant additives for extreme operating conditions.
title Combined ab initio and experimental study of phosphorus-based anti-wear additives interacting with iron and iron oxide
topic Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2510.25620