CHEMICAL-REACTIVITY OF GRAPHITE FLUORIDE IN CONJUNCTION WITH ITS USE AS A SOLID LUBRICANT

Interpretation of differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results suggest that on heating tin/graphite fluoride, cadmium/graphite fluoride and indium/graphite fluoride mixtures to 773 K, chemical reactions occur. Examination of the reaction products from these reactions by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) clearly shows the presence of metallic fluorides. These fluorides are also formed on evaporation of tin, cadmium and indium onto the clean polymer surface. Graphite fluoride flims rubbed on stainless steel, nickel and aluminium counterfaces also form metal fluorides at the interface suggesting a different interpretation of the mode of failure of the lubricant film of this material. © 1979 Chapman and Hall Ltd.