Tribological properties improvement of zinc induced palm oil bio-lubricant with addition of Molybdenum Dialkyldithiophosphate.

Different concentration of Molybdenum Dialkyldithiophosphate is added into Zinc Dialkyldithiophosphate induced bio-lubricant with palm oil as the parent base oil to investigate the effect on friction and wear reduction. The increasing concern on depletion of mineral oil sources and the environmental impact its waste could impose causes the focus on development of lubricant to shift to a new renewable precursor. New formulated bio-lubricant with addition of 0.05wt% MoDTP in 2wt% ZDDP induced palm oil exhibited a superior anti-friction and wear reduction characteristics. From four ball test results, the friction of palm oil added with 0.05wt% MoDTP and 2 wt% ZDDP reduced to 0.072 compared to pure palm oil. The wear scar diameter reduced from 132 µm for pure palm oil to 74 µm with addition of the same additives. The combination of ZDDP and MoDTP at the desirable concentration has reduced the friction and wear scar by forming a polymer layer of phosphates between metal surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]