CVD-diamond nanoparticle synthesis for DLC film application

Author(s)

de Oliveira Correia, Rebeca Falcao Borja ; Wachesk, Cristiane C. ; Hurtado, Carolina R. ; Damm, Djoille D. ; Taiariol, Thalita Sani ; Tada, Dayane Batista ; Vasconcelos, Getulio ; Corat, Evaldo J. ; Trava-Airoldi, Vladimir J.

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: JOURNAL OF NANOPARTICLE RESEARCH; v. 22, n. 9, p. 17-pg., 2020-09-22.

Abstract

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films have been extensively applied as a solid lubricant and as a protective coating due to their attractive chemical, mechanical, and tribological properties. Furthermore, these properties of DLC coatings can be improved with the incorporation of nanoparticles of different materials, especially diamond nanoparticles (DNPs). Herein, the incorporation of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) DNPs was done from a deionized aqueous colloidal solution by using a controlled pulsed valve, which is an innovative aspect of this work. The CVD DNPs were pulverized into the plasma region and incorporated in the DLC films bulk with controllable size particle distribution and density. In addition, an enhanced process to obtain DNPs with suitable size distribution was established by using a high energy ball milling technique, centrifugation, and a special chemical cleaning process. The DLC films were deposited on a metallic substrate via a modified, pulsed DC plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) technique, with an additional cathode. X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and scanning electronic microscopy (SEM) techniques showed that an aqueous colloidal solution of high-purity DNPs with a mean diameter of 32 nm was obtained. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) results showed that it is possible to control particle size distribution by varying the milling and centrifugation time lengths. Therefore, a valuable result was that DLC films could be deposited with DNPs by using clean water without affecting deposition rate, the adhesion between the DLC films and substrates, the structural quality of the film, and keeping lower coefficient of friction. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 12/15857-1 - Scientific studies and innovation application on CVD diamond, DLC and carbon nanostructures obtained by chemical vapor deposition technique
• Grantee: Vladimir Jesus Trava-Airoldi
• Support Opportunities: Research Projects - Thematic Grants
• FAPESP's process: 17/08899-3 - DLC films in multilayer with electric conductive nanoparticles for spatial and industrial applications
• Grantee: Rebeca Falcão Borja de Oliveira Correia
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate (Direct)
• FAPESP's process: 17/01697-6 - Synthesis and functionalization of bimetallic nanoparticles for application in photodynamic therapy of cancer
• Grantee: Dayane Batista Tada
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants