Tribological characterization of epoxy coatings modified with ionic liquids and graphene

The tribological performance of new epoxy resin (RE) coatings on mild steel AISI 1015 substrate has been studied under pin-on-disk configuration against AISI 316L stainless steel. Both single layer and double layer coatings were obtained by spin coating and curing. A single layer coating of RE modified by a dispersion of graphene (G) in the aprotic ionic liquid 1-octyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate, RE+9 wt.%([OMIM]BF4+0.1 wt.%G), prevents wear and reduces the coefficient of friction in a 60% with respect to RE. When the fluorine-free protic ionic liquid bis(2-hydroxyethyl)ammonium oleate (DO) is used, a double layer coating is necessary to achieve wear prevention and friction reduction up to 70% for RE+9 wt.%DO, and up to 50% for RE+9 wt.%(DO+0.1 wt.%G).