Low friction coatings are being developed for a variety of reasons.

Practical conditions in which machines and machine elements have to operate are ever expanding and more often involve features which preclude liquid or grease lubrication. An example of such conditions very common in everyday life is the food-processing industry, where any kind of lubrication is impossible owing to the risk of contamination of a product. Some other conditions include hostile environments such as high temperature or vacuum. High temperatures are common, for example, in the chemical industry and power generation, whereas vacuum is often associated with space technology. A new motivation for development of low friction coatings is a general trend to reduce lubrication for reasons of environmental compliance. All these together challenge materials technology and surface engineering especially. Accordingly, activity in the area of the development of coating materials, sophisticated deposition methods as well as post treatments of coatings has been vigorous in recent years. In this paper we first review typical conditions in which low friction coatings are sought as well as the demands for properties which coatings should fulfil in order to function in an appropriate way. This is followed by a more detailed presentation of three different coatings for three different conditions. Amorphous hard carbon films deposited by arc discharge deposition are hydrogen free, have high hardness and are best characterized as an amorphous diamond. The films have been shown to possess a friction coefficient below 0.2 or even below 0.1 in drysliding conditions associated with good wear resistance. Potential conditions in which these films could be used are dry sliding at room temperature and in a normal atmosphere with adequate humidity. The second coating family which will be presented is based on molybdenum disulphide (MoS2). These are typical coatings for use in a vacuum. Many attempts have been made to overcome the many limitations of these coatings with post-treatments. In this presentation, ion beam and laser processing of MoS2 coatings with or without alloying are dealt with. The third set of conditions includes high temperatures. This is one of the most difficult areas of low friction coatings and no final solutions for practical purposes have been developed.

Acoperiri cu frecare redus sunt n curs de dezvoltate pentru o varietate de motive. Condiiile practice n care maini i organe de maini trebuie s funcioneze sunt n continu expansiune i mai des implic caracteristici care mpiedic lichidul sau lubrifiere. Un exemplu de astfel de condiii foarte frecvente n viaa de zi cu zi este industria de procesare a alimentelor, n cazul n care orice fel de lubrifiere este imposibil din cauza riscului de contaminare a unui produs. Unele alte condiii includ medii ostile, cum ar fi temperatura ridicat sau n vid. Temperaturile ridicate sunt comune, de exemplu, n industria chimic i de generare a energiei electrice, n timp ce n vid este adesea asociata cu tehnologia spaial. O motivaie nou pentru

dezvoltarea de acoperiri cu frecare redus este o tendin general de a reduce lubrifiere pentru motive de respectarea legislaiei de mediu. Toate acestea, mpreun provocare tehnologia i ingineria materialelor de suprafa n special. n consecin, activitatea n zona de dezvoltare a materialelor de acoperire, metode sofisticate de depunere, precum i tratamente post ale acoperirilor a fost puternic n ultimii ani. n aceast lucrare vom examina prima condiiile tipice n care acoperirile cu frecare redus sunt cutate, precum i cererile pentru proprietile care trebuie s le ndeplineasc acoperiri, n scopul de a funciona ntr-un mod adecvat. Aceasta este urmat de o prezentare mai detaliat a trei straturi diferite pentru trei condiii diferite. Amorfe filme dure de atomi de carbon depuse prin depunerea descrcare n arc sunt hidrogen liber, au duritate mare i sunt cel mai bine caracterizate ca un diamant amorf. Filmele s-au dovedit a poseda un coeficient de frecare mai jos de 0,2 sau chiar mai jos de 0,1 uscat-alunecare condiii asociate cu rezistenta la uzura buna. Condiiile poteniale n care aceste filme ar putea fi utilizate sunt uscate la temperatura camerei culisante i ntr-o atmosfer normal, cu umiditate corespunztoare. Familia doilea strat, care va fi prezentat se bazeaz pe disulfur de molibden (MoS2). Acestea sunt acoperiri tipice pentru utilizare ntr-un vid. Multe ncercri au fost fcute pentru a depi limitrile multe din aceste acoperiri cu post-tratamente. n aceast prezentare, de ioni i de prelucrare cu laser de MoS2 acoperiri cu sau fr aliere sunt tratate. Al treilea set de condiii include temperaturi ridicate. Aceasta este una dintre zonele cele mai dificile ale acoperirilor cu frecare redus i exist soluii finale pentru scopuri practice au fost dezvoltate.