23rd International Colloquium Tribology - January 2022 61 Tribology of Ionic Liquids and graphene - a synergistic combination Dr. Thomas Schubert IoLiTec GmbH, Heilbronn, Germany Dr. Sebastian Plebst IoLiTec GmbH, Heilbronn, Germany Corresponding author: plebst@iolitec.de 1. Introduction Ionic liquids (ILs) are a comparatively new class of substances with interesting profiles of properties, such as high thermal stability, low vapour pressure, incombustibility, and a high surface tension. Due to the huge variety of possible ion combinations, many properties can be adjusted to fit to a specific application. In the early 2ks it became evident that ionic liquids can also reduce significantly friction and wear whether used as additive or pure lubricant. In this context, recent publications have shown a beneficial and sometimes even synergistic behaviour between ILs and graphene: To explore this interesting field of technology, the project EPiG was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research to further investigate the interaction between ionic liquids and graphene as lubrication additives. Besides these encouraging results of IL- -graphene-dispersions, first investigations have shown that their addition to a Polyamide 6.6 matrix improves its tribological behavior significantly. In our conference contribution we will present our latest results from this EPIG-project and we will further discuss the potential impact of Ilgraphene-mixtures if applied by design to alternative polymer matrices together with a general outlook on this dynamic field of research. 2. Results and discussion (2 columns) The EPiG - (Entwicklung elektrisch leitfähiger Schmierstoffe und angepasster Polymer-Nanokomposite für Gleitlager durch Verwendung ionischer Flüssigkeiten und Graphen) Project is divided in two parts 1. Part one focusses the lubricant system, in generating a conductive, long-term stable mixture of suitable base oil compositions, ionic liquids and graphene. 2. Part two aims to produce electric conductive PA 6.6 - polymers with a combination of suitable ionic liquids and graphene or carbo-nanotubes. Furthermore, the lubricant and the polymer will be tested in exemplary conditions. Figure 1: Four point measurement of IL/ Carbon improved PA6.6-Polymers. The contribution will focus mainly on part two showing the influences of graphene, ionic liquids and carbo nanotubes on the mechanical and electrical properties of PA6.6. It will furthermore show two different approaches in compounding PA6.6 polymers (kneading and screw extruder). 62 23rd International Colloquium Tribology - January 2022 Tribology of Ionic Liquids and graphene - a synergistic combination Figure 2: Chemical structure of conductivity promoter in PA-6.6 P666(14) BTA. 3. Conclusion It could be shown, that ionic liquids in combination with graphene or carbonano-tubes can provide a critical role to reduce the electrical resisitivity of polyamid 6.6 and pao based lubricants. In terms of long term stability further optimization is needed. References & Acknowledgments The project, on which this report is based, is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research under the code 03XP0220 (term 01.05.2019 to 31.10.2021). The authors are responsible for the content of this publication. We are grateful for the funding of the research work, and we would like to thank the funding provider Projektträger Julich PtJ for the good cooperation.