A Comparative Study of the Performance of Electrical Sliding Contact Lubricants in a Chemically Active Atmosphere

The performance of sliding contact lubricants including a diester-chlorofluorocarbon blend, a neopentylpolyolester-diester blend, a four ring polyphenyl ether, a perfluoroalkylPolyether, and a perfluorotributyl amine in an atmosphere composed of several chemical compounds has been determined. The chemical compounds were those that outgassed at 65°C from electro-mechanical assemblies normally used in guidance systems. A detailed gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy (GC/MS) analysis of this atmosphere and the compounds transferred to the lubricated sliding contact devices is presented. The performance of the lubricants was measured as a function of electrical noise and friction of the sliding contacts.