Superlubricity is a fascinating phenomenon which attracts people to continuously expand ultralow friction and wear from microscale to macroscale. Despite the impressive advances in this field, it is still limited to specific materials and extreme operating conditions. Introducing a heterostructure with intrinsic lattice mismatch into delicate topologies mimicked from nature provides a promising alternative toward macroscopic superlubricity. Herein, 3D-printed MoS2/MoSe2 heterostructures with bioinspired circular-cored square/hexagonal honeycomb topologies were developed. Compared to 3D-printed Al2O3, all topological structures with both high hardness and excellent flexural strength achieve more than 30% decrease in the friction coefficient. The circular-cored hexagonal honeycomb composite with 30% area density exhibits a stable ultralow friction coefficient of 0.09 and a low wear rate of 2.5 × 10-5 mm3·N-1 m-1 under 5 N. Even under 10 N, a highly desirable coefficient value of 0.08 can be maintained within 370 s. The extraordinary ultralow friction could be attributed to the small contact area, high lubricant mass loading, efficient collection and storage of both abrasive debris and lubricant, and the self-orientation in the lubricating film. This work provides new insights into developing high-efficiency lubrication devices and aids in the industrial application of macroscopic superlubricity in future life.
Keywords: 3D printing; MoS2/MoSe2 heterostructures; friction and wear; superlubricity; topological structures.