Progress in Tribological Performances of Carbon-Based Films in Liquid Lubrication Environments

The exploitation of marine resource and the high requirement of environments protection promote the development of liquid lubrication system. Carbon-based films, which possess high hardness, chemical inertness and biological compatibility as well as excellent tribological properties, make them the best candidate materials serviced in water-based conditions. In this paper, a review of the present status of the research and development in the field of the tribological performances for carbon-based films in water-based environments is attempted. The superior properties of carbon-based films would be serviced in liquid conditions for many fields. Nevertheless, further efforts should be paid with respect to the development of smart and long-life time carbon-based films to adapt to a variable tribological applications.