I had the privilege of attending the 5th World Tribology Congress in Turin, Italy, in September, and I came away wowed by the bright future that todays tribology research is promising. The Congress featured more than 900 technical papers in 14 tracks, covering every imaginable area on the study of moving surfaces and reduction of friction and wear.
Research findings in new fields like ecotribology, biotribology, micro- and nanotribology drew standing-room-only audiences. One fascinating field thats new to me is biomimetics. In a keynote talk on biomimetics, Prof. Bharat Bhushan from Ohio State Univ. in the U.S. described his teams work modeling biologically inspired natural surfaces and using new smart materials and manufacturing techniques to duplicate their qualities.
Most of us have heard of the lotus effect – how the microscopic structure of a lotus leaf causes water and dirt to roll off. Bhushan is developing new surfaces that combine the super hydrophobic, self-cleaning, low drag and antifouling features of rice leaves and butterfly wings. Advances in nanotribology allow replication of natural structures, said Bhushan, with tremendous promise in commercial applications.
At the Turin Congress, the International Tribology Council celebrated its 40th anniversary, and ITC President H. Peter Jost noted how the group quickly evolved from a European to a truly global organization; a very sizeable contingent of presenters and participants at the meeting represented Japanese, Chinese and other Asian universities. Japan hosted the previous Congress in 2009, and China will host the next, in 2017.
But global doesnt always mean easy. I struck up a conversation on the tram to the Congress venue one day with several young university professors from Southern China. They were unhappy with the poor Chinese food available in Turin, and they didnt like Italian food at all! Ive always believed Chinese and Italian are two of the worlds truly great cuisines. I guess a taste for one doesnt guarantee a taste for the other.
Nancy J. DeMarco
nancy@LNGpublishing.com
P.S. If the future of our industry is important to you, dont miss the next big tribology meeting, the 19th International Colloquium Tribology for Industrial and Automotive Lubrication, 21-23 January 2014, near Stuttgart, Germany. Visit www.tae.de/tribology to learn more.
P.P.S. And if reaching the EMEA lubricants industry is important to you, dont miss the terrific early bird discounts were offering on 2014 advertising. Contact gloria@LNGpublishing.com to learn more.