Dr. Guojun Liu’s (Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada),  first research in the field of friction reduction and lubrication won an award (Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers’ Captain Alfred E. Hunt Memorial Award). Perhaps more interestingly for the average person, Dr. Liu found a way to reduce friction in automobile engines and machines. From the March 1, 2011 news item on physorg.com,

“The technology should be useful in a wide range of machineries other than automobile engines,” says Dr. Liu, a professor in the Department of Chemistry and an expert in polymer synthesis. “If implemented industrially, this nanotechnology should help prolong machine life and improve energy efficiency.”

Dr Liu’s team prepared miniscule polymer particles that were only tens of nanometers in size. These particles were then dispersed in automobile engine base oils. When tested under metal surface contact conditions that simulated conditions found in automobile engines, these tiny particles were discovered to have an unprecedented friction reduction capability.

Evidently, the friction is reduced by as much as 55% over the current rates. There is no word as to when consumers might see a product based on this work.