L2M – Asphaltenes-Derived Carbon Dots for Friction Reduction

Water-based lubricants have emerged as substitutes for petroleum-based lubricants in various applications such as hydraulic fluids, cooling fluids for metal cutting, and stern tube bearings in ship propeller shafts. My STEM tech business proposes an asphaltenes-derived carbon dots (AsphaDots) lubricant which intends to solve the friction and wear problems in steel and allied materials, which are widely used in sliding, rolling, or contact interfaces in industrial machinery, as well as natural and biological systems. It is important to solve this problem because friction and wear in moving mechanical systems have negative effects on durability, environmental compatibility, and efficiency. Most commercial lubricants are petroleum-based with inherent environmental concerns, difficult to dispose of waste (used) lubricants, and easily attract and retain dirt and wear particles. The increasing scarcity of petroleum resources and growing environmental concerns have prompted the development of alternative solutions for friction reduction. The business idea involved in solving these friction, wear, and attendant environmental problems is the replacement of petroleum-based lubricants with water-based analogues like AsphaDots. As customers are searching for petroleum-based lubricants alternatives, AsphaDots-based lubricants are non-toxic, cheap, and easily re-usable as their impressive hydrophilicity allows filtering of wear particles and dirt in waste AsphaDots lubricants. The current challenge in commercializing AsphaDots is the lack of funding to develop a prototype for large scale production. Currently, 10 g AsphaDots per batch can be prepared in our laboratory. And we hope to develop a prototype that enables the preparation of 10 kg per batch.

Faculty Supervisor:

Milana Trifkovic

Student:

Partner:

Innovate Calgary

Discipline:

Engineering

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services

University:

University of Calgary

Program: