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In the experiment, the researchers observed that there can be rapid relative sliding between the inner and outer walls of carbon nanotubes with a length of centimeters, and the ultra-low friction between the tube walls was measured, thus proving the phenomenon of super lubrication. Interestingly, this friction has nothing to do with the length of the carbon nanotubes, that is, the inner layer of the carbon nanotubes can be easily extracted no matter how long they are.

It is worth mentioning that they also found that by loading some nano-sheet-like structures on the outer wall of the carbon nanotubes with fracture at both ends, a "miniature windmill" can be formed naturally, and it can run at high speed with a light blow. It also indirectly proves the phenomenon of super lubrication.

Professor Michael Urbakh of Tel Aviv University, a world-renowned expert in friction theory, believes that this work "with its landmark novel discovery, definitively proves the existence of macro-scale super-lubrication, without a doubt, this is the first observation. Such low friction from the micro to the macro scale."

Wei Fei said: "We have provided an ideal model for realizing ultra-lubrication. As long as other materials meet the conditions, they can also achieve ultra-lubrication. In the future, the field of nano-devices is promising."

Recently, a research team led by Professor Wei Fei of Tsinghua University announced that the macro-scale super-lubrication phenomenon in the atmospheric environment has been detected for the first time in the world, which brings a glimmer of hope for mankind to overcome friction in the future-once a super-lubricant material is manufactured And components, the mechanical watch that never stopped the last time the clockwork, and the bearing that never wears out are no longer far away.

According to statistics, about 1/3 to 1/2 of the world's primary energy is consumed in the friction process, and the losses caused by friction and wear in industrialized countries account for 5% to 7% of GDP. In the micro-nano scale, as the surface area per unit volume of the material increases sharply, interfacial friction has become a key factor restricting the performance and life of the device. Bearing Enterprise

The "best way" to solve friction and wear problems is to achieve super lubrication. Does super lubrication really exist? In the past 20 years, many scientific experiments have proved that it can only be achieved at special micro-nano scales, and most of them can be achieved under ultra-high vacuum conditions, but this is far from practical applications. Scientists once thought that it was almost impossible to achieve super lubrication on a macro scale.

In 10 years, the team led by Wei Fei has done a lot of research on carbon nanotubes. They found that large-scale relative sliding can occur between two adjacent walls of carbon nanotubes, which is an ideal material for studying super-lubricity. Subsequently, they teamed up with the Research Center for Micro-Nano Mechanics and Multidisciplinary Innovation of Tsinghua University and the School of Information, Peking University to carry out experiments.