Experimental evaluation of the lubrication performance of MoS2/CNT nanofluid for minimal quantity lubrication in Ni-based alloy grinding

A nanofluid minimum quantity lubrication with addition of one kind of nanoparticle has several limitations, such as grinding of difficult-to-cutting materials. Hybrid nanoparticles integrate the properties of two or more kinds of nanoparticles, thus having better lubrication and heat transfer performances than single nanoparticle additives. However, the use of hybrid nanoparticles in nanofluid minimum quantity lubrication grinding has not been reported. This study aims to determine whether hybrid nanoparticles have better lubrication performance than pure nanoparticle. A hybrid nanofluid consisting of MoS2 nanoparticles with good lubrication effect and CNTs with high heat conductivity coefficient is investigated. The effects of the hybrid nanofluid on grinding force, coefficient of friction, and workpiece surface quality for Ni-based alloy grinding are analyzed. Results show that the MoS2/CNT hybrid nanoparticles achieve better lubrication effect than single nanoparticles. The optimal MoS2/CNT mixing ratio and nanofluid concentration are 2:1 and 6 wt%, respectively.