Inorganic Fullerene-(IF) like nanoparticles made of metal dichalcogenides ( M eS2 , Me= Mo and W)continue to attract an increasing interest as friction modifiers and anti-wear additives in liquid lubricant. Their efficiency as lubricant additive strongly depends on intrinsic properties of the nanoparticles (structure, morphology, size ... ), tribological conditions (nature of rubbing surface, pressure, temperature ... ) and also on the package of additives present in the full y formulated engine oil. Thus the control and the optimization of these properties require a perfect knowledge of the lubrication mechanisms of these nanoparticles. The aim of this work is to identify the parameters which influence the behavior of the nanoparticles at the nano-scale and to establish a correlation between this behavior, the lubrication mechanisms of nanoparticles and their tribological properties observed at macro-scale. For this aim, we have chosen a multi-scale approach, which firstly consists in studying the behavior of individual fullerenes (IF- M eS2, Me= Mo and W) during mechanical solicitation. Therefore, thanks to a new in situ TEM technique including nanoindentation, we have visualized the behavior of individual fullerenes in real time during nana-compression and nano-sliding tests. These results allowed us to identify the influence of the intrinsic characteristics of nanoparticles on their response at the nano-scale and to estimate critical values of pressure for rolling, sliding, exfoliation and failure of individual IF - M eS2 particles (Me= Mo and W).Secondly, we focused on the lubrication mechanisms of fullerenes when they are dispersed in base oil in boundary lubrication. The tribofilms and the wear particles obtained after friction tests at three different rubbing surfaces (steel, alumina and DLC), were studied using XPS analyses, SEM and TEM observations. We have clearly shown that the lubricating properties of nanoparticles depend both on their intrinsic properties and on the nature of the contact. Thereby, a correlation between the behavior of single nanoparticles at nano-scale and their lubricating properties under boundary lubrication was established. Finally, the influence of the dispersant on the tribological properties of the nanoparticles was investigated. The tribological properties of nanoparticles in fully formulated engine oil were also evaluated. Two experimental methods based on a 'Bottomup' and a 'top-dawn' approach were adopted to evaluate the interactions between nanoparticles and all the additives in fully formulated oil. The influence of the temperature on the tribological properties of the nanoparticles was also discussed.
Mécanismes de lubrification des nanoparticules à structure Fullerène : approche multi-échelle