OK, I got your attention; but I believe it is true. I have searched the forums here and none of the threads addressing nano-lubricants really seemed to be the right place to discuss this. Too many statements that are, in my opinion simply wrong. I have questions, but first I am going to do a lecture on the stuff. Corrections welcome if I screw something up - but citing a reputable source would be nice if you do.
The ultimate lube is the Inorganic Fullerene like Tungsten Disulphide. The IF in the title was not a question; it is part of the description. W is the correct abbreviation for Tungsten (Wolfram originally). OK, semantics/definitions finished; the substance.
WS2 it the most lubricious material available (Everything credible I have seen confirms this). This material alone would provide better lubrication than MoDS2. A statement in one of the threads I mentioned stated that WS2 is not used in engine oils is because it won't stay in suspension. Similar to moly, the material will bond to surfaces. If it stays suspended long enough to move through the engine n times, much of it will bonded with the metal of the engine. This is a good thing.
Then there is size. Generally moly is not really nano sized. Nano particles need to be less than 100 nanometers. The (normally) larger moly particles can be filtered out of the oil by the oil filters. WS2 can come in most any particle size. At least as large as 1000 nm. They can also be nano sized. But the IF makes a huge difference.
If you don't know what a Buckyball is, you can do a bit of research. The structure is named after architect Buckminster Fuller, the inventor of geodesic building structures. It is essentially a nano scale geodesic (from the atomic level crystalline formation) structure. It was initially observed in carbon. And was thought for a while to be only found there. This may be the base substance in lubricants claiming nano diamonds. I have not been able to get a clear answer to that. Secrecy seems to be rampant in the industry. Like it would keep any competent person with some equipment to determine the contents if they planned to manufacture a copy.
Onward. The F says that the the WS2 is in a Fullerene like structure. The I says it is not organic (e.g., not carbon). I believe the process and inherent structure puts these particles at less than 100 nm. Truly nano particles.
There are several major effects associated with the materials of this size. The simplest and the one that is the basis of the utility of this material; it is so far the most slippery material on earth. Next is the size. The small size enables attraction and bonding processes that appear only at these particle sizes. You get some of this effect in materials (e.g., non-nano moly) but they are much stronger under 100 nm.
But, there is more. The non-IF particles are a superb lubricant, but the process of allowing atomic forces to bond the material so tightly to the surfaces that they make serious effects of filling in the molecular sized peaks and valleys in the surfaces of the materials being lubricated is a function of particle size. The IF particles are constructed rather like an onion (a really really teeny tiny [url=onionhttp://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/images/icons/default/grin.gif][url=onionhttp://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/images/icons/default/grin.gif]onionhttp://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/images/icons/default/grin.gif[/url][/url] ). When they are placed between surfaces under some pressure (e.g., bearings) they adhere to a surface and peel off parts of their structure which greatly enhances the filling of surface voids. In no way I am aware of does this process rely on the Higgs Boson or dark matter. Just sayn.
Some formulations for a lubricant need to have two different materials to include both lubricity and surface adhesion. IF WS2 makes doorknob snot look like industrial crazy glue.
OK. That's over. I have been trying for quite a long time to get a small quantity of the IF WS2 to play with. So far my success has been very close to zero. I have found only one source. But they want $330 for 50 grams; the minimum order. There are several sources in Asia. Pricing not really known, but they seem cheaper. Some seem quite questionable. I can't tell if the stuff they would ship is IF WS2 or ground up old dental plates. The ones that seem legit simply do not respond to my request for a small amount.
There may be some US sources, but they have not particularly wanted to talk either. I saw that ApNano (sort of the inventors of the IF WS2) was finally shipping to a specific user in late 2012. Up until this point they has seemed to be in a volume production mode; but that was not necessarily true. Their ApNano IF WS2 is sold (as various mixes) as NanoLube. There is a US company that feels it holds that trademark, so it gets a bit confusing. But, on the bright side, I have found no source of those materials either.
What I am really after is the pure powder. I do not particularly want want it mixed with some unknown oil. I really just want to imbed the material in some high pressure points. If I want (or less likely, need) additional oil I would want to use one I trust from prior experience. Not one they decide is a good thing.
I think this site has a pretty good sprinkling of lubrication savvy people, so after all this, does anyone know where I can get a small amount of IF WS2?
The ultimate lube is the Inorganic Fullerene like Tungsten Disulphide. The IF in the title was not a question; it is part of the description. W is the correct abbreviation for Tungsten (Wolfram originally). OK, semantics/definitions finished; the substance.
WS2 it the most lubricious material available (Everything credible I have seen confirms this). This material alone would provide better lubrication than MoDS2. A statement in one of the threads I mentioned stated that WS2 is not used in engine oils is because it won't stay in suspension. Similar to moly, the material will bond to surfaces. If it stays suspended long enough to move through the engine n times, much of it will bonded with the metal of the engine. This is a good thing.
Then there is size. Generally moly is not really nano sized. Nano particles need to be less than 100 nanometers. The (normally) larger moly particles can be filtered out of the oil by the oil filters. WS2 can come in most any particle size. At least as large as 1000 nm. They can also be nano sized. But the IF makes a huge difference.
If you don't know what a Buckyball is, you can do a bit of research. The structure is named after architect Buckminster Fuller, the inventor of geodesic building structures. It is essentially a nano scale geodesic (from the atomic level crystalline formation) structure. It was initially observed in carbon. And was thought for a while to be only found there. This may be the base substance in lubricants claiming nano diamonds. I have not been able to get a clear answer to that. Secrecy seems to be rampant in the industry. Like it would keep any competent person with some equipment to determine the contents if they planned to manufacture a copy.
Onward. The F says that the the WS2 is in a Fullerene like structure. The I says it is not organic (e.g., not carbon). I believe the process and inherent structure puts these particles at less than 100 nm. Truly nano particles.
There are several major effects associated with the materials of this size. The simplest and the one that is the basis of the utility of this material; it is so far the most slippery material on earth. Next is the size. The small size enables attraction and bonding processes that appear only at these particle sizes. You get some of this effect in materials (e.g., non-nano moly) but they are much stronger under 100 nm.
But, there is more. The non-IF particles are a superb lubricant, but the process of allowing atomic forces to bond the material so tightly to the surfaces that they make serious effects of filling in the molecular sized peaks and valleys in the surfaces of the materials being lubricated is a function of particle size. The IF particles are constructed rather like an onion (a really really teeny tiny [url=onionhttp://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/images/icons/default/grin.gif][url=onionhttp://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/images/icons/default/grin.gif]onionhttp://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/images/icons/default/grin.gif[/url][/url] ). When they are placed between surfaces under some pressure (e.g., bearings) they adhere to a surface and peel off parts of their structure which greatly enhances the filling of surface voids. In no way I am aware of does this process rely on the Higgs Boson or dark matter. Just sayn.
Some formulations for a lubricant need to have two different materials to include both lubricity and surface adhesion. IF WS2 makes doorknob snot look like industrial crazy glue.
OK. That's over. I have been trying for quite a long time to get a small quantity of the IF WS2 to play with. So far my success has been very close to zero. I have found only one source. But they want $330 for 50 grams; the minimum order. There are several sources in Asia. Pricing not really known, but they seem cheaper. Some seem quite questionable. I can't tell if the stuff they would ship is IF WS2 or ground up old dental plates. The ones that seem legit simply do not respond to my request for a small amount.
There may be some US sources, but they have not particularly wanted to talk either. I saw that ApNano (sort of the inventors of the IF WS2) was finally shipping to a specific user in late 2012. Up until this point they has seemed to be in a volume production mode; but that was not necessarily true. Their ApNano IF WS2 is sold (as various mixes) as NanoLube. There is a US company that feels it holds that trademark, so it gets a bit confusing. But, on the bright side, I have found no source of those materials either.
What I am really after is the pure powder. I do not particularly want want it mixed with some unknown oil. I really just want to imbed the material in some high pressure points. If I want (or less likely, need) additional oil I would want to use one I trust from prior experience. Not one they decide is a good thing.
I think this site has a pretty good sprinkling of lubrication savvy people, so after all this, does anyone know where I can get a small amount of IF WS2?