High-temperature lubrication has always been a hot topic in the lubricant and grease industry, and is also an essential concern in the high-end equipment sector to be addressed. Carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are an emerging material widely applied in the field of lubrication, owing to their exceptional lubricity and high load-bearing capacity. However, the vulnerability of CQDs to oxidation in air and reduced stability dramatically restrict their high-temperature application capability. In this study, a nanocomposite of amphiphilic polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) homopolymer with excellent lubricating properties and thermal stability, which is hydrogen bonded to CQDs (CQDs@PVP), was designed to achieve low friction and wear of lubricants at high temperatures. The CQDs@PVP are consistently dispersed in both PEG400 and water, and exhibit superior lubricity compared to unmodified CQDs at high temperatures (ranging from 200–150 °C and 90.50 °C). Meanwhile, the dense carbon film on the wear surface and the chemically reactive film of iron compounds directly contribute to the enhanced lubrication performance. These analytical results demonstrate the powerful candidacy of CQDs@PVP as a lubrication additive and promote future high-temperature applications of CQDs in industrial production.

高温润滑一直是润滑油脂行业的热门话题，也是高端装备领域亟待解决的重要问题。碳量子点（CQD）是一种新兴材料，因其优异的润滑性和高承载能力而广泛应用于润滑领域。然而，CQD 在空气中易氧化且稳定性降低，极大地限制了其高温应用能力。在这项研究中，设计了一种具有优异润滑性能和热稳定性的两亲性聚乙烯吡咯烷酮（PVP）均聚物纳米复合材料，该复合材料与CQD（CQDs@PVP）氢键结合，旨在实现润滑剂在高温下的低摩擦和磨损。 CQD@PVP 始终分散在 PEG400 和水中，与未改性的 CQD 相比，在高温（200–150 °C 和 90.50 °C）下表现出优异的润滑性。同时，磨损表面致密的碳膜和铁化合物的化学反应膜直接有助于润滑性能的增强。这些分析结果证明了 CQDs@PVP 作为润滑添加剂的强大候选资格，并促进了 CQDs 在工业生产中的未来高温应用。