Synthesis and characterization of copper nanoparticles for tribological applications.

Copper nanoparticles (Cu NPs) have tremendous capacity to reduce friction occurred in various vehicles and machineries. Addition of a small amount of Cu NPs to the lubricants used for friction reduction can improve the efficiency of these lubricants remarkably. But the challenge is to prepare the appropriate copper nanoparticles suitable for tribological application as there are different reaction mechanisms involved. In this project, copper nanoparticles will be prepared in the Center for Nanotechnology Research (CNR @AIUB) using simple chemical reactions. The prepared copper nanoparticles will be characterized using conventional techniques. Afterwards, tribological applications of the as-prepared copper nanoparticles will be investigated using different types of lubricants such as Mobil. Mathematical calculations, modeling, and simulations will be carried out to predict the reaction mechanisms and to justify the obtained outcomes.