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Looking at the lubrication knowledge carried by the manned spacecraft of the | - interview with Liu Weimin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

Looking at the lubrication knowledge carried by the manned spacecraft of the | - interview with Liu Weimin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

Academician liu Weimin of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

Moving from a manufacturing power to a manufacturing power, the demand for advanced lubricating materials in high-end manufacturing, aerospace, transportation and other fields is more urgent, requiring breakthroughs in many technical bottlenecks such as environmental adaptability, performance stability, and product refinement

Some of the products developed by the R&D team of high-end equipment lubricating oil and grease of Lanzhou Chemical Institute have replaced imported products, which has significantly enhanced the mainland's R&D and innovation capabilities in the field of high-end lubricating materials

In the future, it is necessary to answer scientific questions such as how friction and wear occur, whether near-zero friction (super-lubrication) and wear can be obtained, whether the research paradigm of lubricated materials can be innovated, and whether lubrication material technology can be more intelligent or adaptive to change working conditions

Wen | Zhang Wenjing, reporter of the "Lookout" news weekly, and Sun Yinglan

On April 16, the Shenzhou 13 manned spacecraft, which had been traveling in space for half a year, returned to Earth, marking a new starting point for China's aerospace industry. Amid the joyful cheers of the Chinese people, Liu Weimin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, fell into deeper thinking. He served as the chief scientist of the "Space Environment Test of Solid Lubricating Materials of Shenzhou 7 Spacecraft" project and the 973 Project of Lubricating Materials of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

In an exclusive interview with the "Lookout" news weekly, Liu Weimin told reporters that lubrication is an ancient discipline, and ubiquitous friction makes lubrication an eternal research topic. At present, the lubrication technology and materials independently developed by the mainland have been widely used in the aerospace field, but in the mainland's progress from a manufacturing power to a manufacturing power, there are still many problems in the core materials such as lubricants and greases that support the development of high-end manufacturing, and there are still many problems in their related design theories, preparation technologies, and application technologies.

How can we continue to promote and enhance the mainland's R&D and innovation capabilities in the field of high-end lubricating materials, and make more contributions to China's manufacturing industry and China's aerospace industry?

Independent research and development of aerospace lubrication materials have achieved outstanding results

Lookout: What does lubrication materials research mean for aerospace engineering?

Liu Weimin: Aerospace engineering is a huge system engineering that involves all aspects. Among them, many mechanical motion mechanisms or components contained in vehicles, space vehicles, lunar and Mars rovers, etc. need to be lubricated. Such as vehicle propulsion and servo system, space rendezvous and docking mechanism, attitude control system, power supply system, robotic arm, etc. These mechanical kinematic mechanisms or components typically operate under harsh environmental conditions such as high/low temperature alternating, high vacuum, strong radiation, high and low speeds, and special media. Lubrication is the most important guarantee for their reliable operation and the maintenance of a set operating life.

Today, with the advancement of technology, space vehicles have been running for 15 years or more. The expensive cost of aerospace engineering and the difficulty of replacing lubricating materials for space motion mechanisms require lubricating materials to have good environmental adaptability, excellent performance stability and long service life. Lubrication failures or lubrication failures can have catastrophic consequences or huge losses, posing a serious challenge to aerospace lubrication.

In order to solve the problem of aerospace lubrication, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1958 and the European Space Agency (ESA) established specialized agencies in 1972 to engage in aerospace lubrication research, developed a series of space lubrication material technologies, and established a very complete material assessment and evaluation system. Despite this, there are still more than 20 space lubrication failures or failure accidents in the world, including the United States, Britain, France, Germany and other space powers, causing major economic losses.

"Lookout": What are the important achievements of the mainland aerospace lubrication materials?

Liu Weimin: The research on aerospace lubrication materials in mainland China began in the 1960s, and the current State Key Laboratory of Solid Lubrication, formerly known as the Friction, Wear and Lubrication Laboratory of the Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (hereinafter referred to as the Lanzhou Institute of Chemical Physics). After four generations of perseverance and efforts, we have established an independent aerospace lubrication system and aerospace lubrication experimental assessment system on the mainland, and developed aerospace lubrication materials with special properties, including 5 types of space lubricating grease, 6 types of solid lubricating films, more than 20 kinds of bonded lubrication coatings, multiple solid-grease composite lubrication systems and polymer composite lubricating materials. Among them, the lubricating material technology developed and developed by Lanzhou Chemicals is applied to the Long March series rocket engine and rocket servo mechanism, satellite solar sail board and antenna system, energy system and life support related moving parts, and the moon and Mars rover related motion mechanism, which meets the current needs of continental aerospace engineering for space lubrication materials and technologies.

In 2008, the aerospace lubrication team used the Shenzhou 7 spacecraft to carry out the first outer space environment test of solid lubrication materials, which provided a theoretical basis for the development of aerospace lubrication materials that are resistant to high and low temperatures and resistant to atomic oxygen radiation. The aerospace lubrication research work has won the second prize of the National Natural Science Award, the second prize of the National Technological Invention Award, and the medal of "Outstanding Contribution Collective of China's Manned SpaceFlight Project" jointly issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, and the former General Equipment Department of the People's Liberation Army.

"Lubrication" accelerates economic development

"Lookout": What is the international level of research and development and application of lubricating materials in the mainland?

Liu Weimin: About 10,000 years ago, humans invented the wheel, which is considered an important technological advance, because the wheel transforms most of the movement from high-resistance sliding friction to low-resistance rolling friction. From the wheels to the bearings and gears, it has greatly promoted the progress of human civilization and social development. Lubrication is the key material technology to ensure the high efficiency, high reliability and long-life operation of the dynamic system of bearings, gears and other equipment, and plays an important role in saving energy and resources.

The research and application of lubricating materials by human beings has experienced the process of water, animal fat, vegetable oil, mineral oil, synthetic lubricating oil and solid lubrication. Developed countries in Europe and the United States have a long history of research in the fields of lubricating oil and grease. Multinational companies represented by Mobil, Shell, Lubrizol, etc. have invested a lot of money and human resources to continue to develop high-end lubricating oils, of which the United States has obvious advantages in synthetic lubricants and lubricating oil additives, occupying a large international market share. Germany and Japan are able to produce the most high-end greases in the world, such as precision machine tool grease, high-speed railway bearing grease, shield machine grease, etc.

There is a certain gap between the mainland and developed countries in the field of solid lubricating materials. Due to the lack of accumulation in the research and development and application of solid lubricating materials used in the fields of automobiles and metal processing, the types and performance of domestic products in mainland China are still insufficient compared with developed countries. In the field of lubricating oils, the lubricants produced by Sinopec Lubricating Oil Co., Ltd. and the Lubricating Oil Branch of China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation occupy a large market share in China. In recent years, they have also paid more attention to the research and development and application promotion of high-quality lubricants and greases.

Lanzhou Institute of Chemicals high-end equipment lubricating oil R & D team in recent years to carry out synthetic ester lubricants, special lubrication additives, high-load gear oil, high-end grease and other research and development work, related products have been in mining metallurgy, cement production, wood-based panels and plastic processing, rail transit, wind power generation and other equipment motion systems or institutions to obtain large-scale applications, some products instead of imported products, significantly enhance the mainland in the field of high-end lubricating materials R & D innovation capabilities.

"Lookout": What are the new problems and challenges facing the research of lubricating materials?

Liu Weimin: Advanced lubricating materials have been widely used in aerospace, iron and steel metallurgy, high-speed railways, precision machine tools, wind power, marine engineering, nuclear technology and other important industrial fields. With the development of new technologies, the research of lubricating materials is also facing new challenges.

From the perspective of the future development trend of the discipline and the demand for lubricating materials in the national high-tech industry, the future needs to be answered at the scientific level, how friction and wear occur, whether near-zero friction (super lubrication) and wear can be obtained, whether the research paradigm of lubricating materials can be innovated, and whether lubrication material technology can be more intelligent or adaptive to change working conditions. At the technical level, it is necessary to break through the preparation technology of lubrication basic raw materials and high-end lubricating material products, the assessment and evaluation technology of lubrication materials under harsh environmental conditions, the lubrication technology of equipment with the same life cycle, the design and preparation technology of multi-functional lubricating grease, the greening and recycling technology of lubrication products, and the technical bottlenecks of life medical lubrication materials.

In order to ensure the rapid development of intelligent manufacturing, advanced manufacturing and major equipment and facilities in the mainland, the discipline of lubricating materials must be considered at a more important strategic level, and the economic development of the new era of "lubrication" must be accelerated with advanced material technology.

Looking at the lubrication knowledge carried by the manned spacecraft of the | - interview with Liu Weimin, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences

On April 16, 2022, the Shenzhou 13 manned spacecraft return module successfully landed in the predetermined area of the Dongfeng landing field Peng Yuan photo / This magazine

To make the lubrication discipline bigger and stronger, we need continuous innovation

"Lookout": What suggestions do you have for the development of lubrication disciplines in the mainland?

Liu Weimin: The development of lubrication materials in mainland China has always been adhering to the application-oriented, starting from actual needs, and actively exploring and solving lubrication problems in the field of engineering. Moving from a manufacturing power to a manufacturing power, the demand for advanced lubricating materials in high-end manufacturing, aerospace, transportation and other fields is more urgent, requiring breakthroughs in many technical bottlenecks such as environmental adaptability, performance stability, and product refinement.

In addition, the research of lubricating materials and technologies reflects the characteristics of multidisciplinary intersection, and it is necessary to conduct comprehensive research from mechanical engineering, chemistry, physics, mechanics, materials and other disciplines. Due to the large demand for capital investment and technology research and development investment in the lubrication materials industry, coupled with the wide variety of materials involved, the R & D and production application cycle is long.

In view of the importance of lubricating materials and technologies in equipment, as well as the lagging status quo of the research and development and industrialization of high-end lubricating materials in mainland China, it is recommended to take necessary measures or policies to actively promote research and application in this field to ensure the healthy development of lubricating materials disciplines in mainland China.

The first is to strengthen basic research and attach importance to original research results. The state should continue to increase support for basic research on lubricating materials, especially to increase the exploration and research of original theories and technologies. At the same time, interdisciplinary research and interdisciplinary cooperation are encouraged. Lubricating materials are a branch of materials science, but in a strict sense, the design, preparation and engineering applications of lubricating materials involve mathematics, mechanics, physics, chemistry, metallurgy, mechanical engineering, material science, petrochemical and other disciplines, and the development and progress of lubricating materials are closely related to other interdisciplinary disciplines. It is recommended that relevant state departments set up special funds to encourage and support multidisciplinary interdisciplinary research in the field of lubricating materials.

The second is to strengthen cooperation and exchanges between academia and industry, and form a cooperation alliance between academia, research and industry. At present, the interaction between academia and industry in the field of domestic lubricating materials has a good momentum of development in terms of technical exchanges and talent flows. The state should encourage universities and scientific research institutions to carry out forward-looking research in the field of lubrication in view of the scientific and technical problems faced by the industry, provide scientific basis and technical support for the research and development and production of high-end lubricating materials for lubricating oil and grease enterprises; attach importance to the enthusiasm of enterprises, support enterprises and scientific research institutes to carry out research and development of high-end lubrication products and the application performance and service behavior of products; promote the technological progress of lubricating oil and grease enterprises, promote enterprises to move towards higher goals and directions, do green environmental protection, high efficiency and energy saving, High-end products that lead the future development of the whole life. Through the joint construction of joint laboratories, joint research and development centers, etc., to promote cooperation and exchanges between research institutions and production enterprises, the combination of learning, research, production and use of four aspects, the formation of strategic cooperation alliances, to promote the development and production of high-end lubricating materials and applications.

The third is to increase investment and attach importance to the development of high-end lubricating materials. The industrialization process of the mainland is still in the stage of rapid development, and it is urgent for countries and enterprises to pay attention to the research and development of high-end lubricating material technology and narrow the gap with developed countries in the field of high-end lubricating oil and grease.

The fourth is to attach importance to the standardization of lubrication materials. With the development of the mainland equipment manufacturing industry and the development of lubrication materials discipline, it is necessary to establish China's own lubrication material standards, and at the same time should actively participate in the formulation of international important lubrication material standards, and large state-owned leading enterprises such as PetroChina and Sinopec should play a leading role as the backbone.

Lookout: What are the suggestions for the cultivation of professional talents?

Liu Weimin: Talent is the main body of scientific and technological innovation, and the research and innovation of lubricating materials requires a large number of professional talents to continue to work hard. We should always pay attention to the cultivation of talents and the construction of the team. It is recommended that countries start at the following levels:

Strengthen the education and popularization of lubrication knowledge in science and engineering universities and equipment manufacturing industries, strengthen the training of lubrication material professionals; encourage the industry and universities to establish a joint talent training mechanism, in order to better train and transport R&D talents for the industry, enhance the stamina of industrial development, strengthen the training and support of young scientific research backbones, encourage them to participate in academic and industrial conferences at home and abroad, and attach importance to the training and team building of engineering and technical personnel. In the construction of the talent team, we should also attach importance to the publicity and education of patriotism and collectivism, learn the spirit of scientists in the new era, create a scientific research and innovation team of "loyalty, patriotism, responsibility and dedication", and create a strategic scientific and technological force for national lubrication material research. ■

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