[Logic]

Again: More for my own edification as to why this worked so well in all the engines I treated.
If anyone is finding these posts interesting; do let me know!

Large-scale Manufacturing of Nanoparticulate based Lubrication Additives for Improved Energy
Efficiency and Reduced Emissions.

"...One of the key additives, ZDDP, is used in almost all types of engine and other industrial lubricants due to its outstanding anti-wear, extreme pressure (EP), and anti-oxidation characteristics, especially under severe application conditions.
Without it, the durability and performance of these lubricants are severely impaired. ZDDP forms a highly durable and protective boundary film on most sliding surfaces and thus prevents micro-welding or seizure under severe loading conditions.

Another important additive is molybdenum dialkyl dithiocarbamate, or MoDTC, used primarily to achieve lower friction on sliding surfaces.
Previous research has shown that this additive results in the formation of a layered MoS2-like boundary film and thus provides much lower friction [3].
Some of the boron-based nanolubrication additives (i.e., boric acid and hexagonal boron nitride) being proposed here also have layered structures and can thus
provide low friction and wear to lubricated sliding surfaces.

The TOF-SIMS analysis provided critical information on the extent of tribochemical interactions that occurred during these sliding tests. The general observations from the TOF-SIMS studies were that, with the use of boric acid in partially formulated engine oils, much thicker and hence more protective boundary films had formed (which could explain the extreme resistance of these oils to wear and scuffing, see Table 3).
The protective boundary films consisted of large amounts of boron, but some zinc, sulfur, and phosphorus were also detected during these analyses, depending on the type of oil tested.
We believe that zinc, sulfur, and phosphorus are mostly coming from the ZDDP additive in the oil, but apparently, our boron-based additives are blending with these in a very synergistic and highly effective manner, i.e., making ZDDP function even better.

we investigated whether a hybrid nanolubrication approach involving the mixing of our boron-based additives with MoS 2-based nanolubricants might trigger additional beneficial effects, especially under severe tribological conditions.
Accordingly, we included MoS2-based nanolubricants to develop a hybrid boron-MoS2-based nanolubricant that might collectively provide superior lubricity over a broader range of test conditions.
A sub-contract was established with the University of Arkansas to pursue this approach. Specifically, the University of Arkansas participants blended and provided a series of nanolubricants that consisted of nanoparticles of MoS2 and boric acid in a carrier oil.
The tribological testing (as shown in Table 4) of these hybrid lubricants demonstrated desirable performance, as they together reduced friction considerably under severe sliding conditions in comparison to commercial lubricants without any nanoparticulates.
Thus, our joint work has confirmed that a hybrid lubrication approach might also provide significant benefits in terms of much improved friction and wear properties.

In an effort to understand the chemical nature of the protective boundary films that resulted from the hybrid nanolubricants, we performed comprehensive surface analytical studies on sliding surfaces.
The XPS analysis of the tribofilm in Fig. 23 revealed high concentrations of boron and
sulfur in the tribofilm. Also, the presence of molybdenum and oxygen was confirmed.
The Mo most likely came from the MoS2, since the Mo content of the steel sample was very low (i.e.less than 1 wt.%), while oxygen may have come from the boric acid or tribo-oxidation of MoS2 and/or sliding steel surfaces.
Moreover, we found some phosphorus within the sliding wear tracks, which may have been due to ZDDP additives in the commercial oil.
These surface studies further confirmed that hybrid nanolubricants form more durable low-friction and wear protective films and thus provide superior tribological performance.

In tests with fully formulated 75W90 gear oil, the signs of micropitting showed up after about 4 hours of testing and worsened after 15 hours (see Fig. 27).
However, in a repeat of the same tests with the same Valvoline gear oil blended with our boron-based lubrication additives, we could not detect any sign of micropit formation even after 15 hours of testing.


the level of noise recorded during testing of control 75W90 oil was much higher than that of the boron-additive-containing 75W90 oil.

https://publications.anl.gov/anlpubs...neral%20(known.


Forgot to mention: Some very nice pics and graphs, so do follow the link.