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Momozono Lab (NSK Tribology Collaborative Research Center)
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The lab uncovers the friction and lubrication of bearings through theory and visualization.
AboutAbout the lab
Toward low-torque, long-life bearings.
Momozono Lab studies tribology, the field that deals with friction, wear, and lubrication.
At a collaborative research center established by NSK Ltd. on the Yokohama Campus, the lab works on rolling bearings.
Young researchers from the company are stationed at the lab, so students can carry out their research in an environment with many people to consult.
Opportunities to interact with labs at other universities are also arranged regularly, not only within the university.
Key terms
- Tribology
- The study of friction, wear, and lubrication that occur between surfaces in contact that move against each other
- Rolling bearing
- A component that supports the rotating shaft of a machine so that it turns smoothly, using rolling balls or rollers. Also simply called a bearing
- Torque
- The magnitude of the force that tries to turn a shaft. In a bearing, the smaller the torque, the less force is needed to make it rotate
NewsLab news
A paper on visualizing lubrication states that accounts for surface roughness was accepted by Lubricants
Held a lab tour for prospective graduate school applicants
Held a lab tour for incoming fourth-year undergraduates
A master's student received the Outstanding Presentation Award at the midterm presentations
Held a joint tour of labs ahead of lab assignments in the Department of Mechanical Engineering
ResearchResearch themes
Rolling bearings, which are used in the moving parts of many kinds of products, are required to achieve even lower torque and longer life. The lab aims to derive theoretical equations that describe the mechanisms of bearing lubrication, and to find guidelines for optimal design based on that theory.
*Illustrative imageBuilding a Theory of Lubrication
In the environments where bearings are used, temperature, pressure, speed, and material properties interact in complex ways. The lab takes on the challenge of describing, with theoretical equations, the difficult phenomena of friction, wear, and lubrication that occur at fine surface asperities.
*Illustrative imageVisualizing the State of Lubrication
To handle harsh conditions such as oil films only nanometers thick and very high pressures, the lab is advancing techniques that make the state of lubrication visible. Visualization is also used to verify the accuracy of the theoretical equations the lab derives.
MembersFaculty
Members of Momozono Lab consist of faculty, doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students, collaborative researchers, and visiting researchers.As of 2026
- Project ProfessorSatoshi MomozonoPublications ↗
VoicesStudent voices
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Saito LabSchool of Engineering, Department of Mechanical EngineeringHeat transfer and heat transport technologies based on heat …The information on this page is compiled by the LabLog team from the lab's public information and interviews. For corrections or removal requests, please contact LabLog, not the lab.
Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Ball bearing” Solaris2006 / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Building a Theory of Lubrication: “75 MM MILLIMETER BORE BEARING WITH SILICON NITRIDE BALLS - NARA - 17418840” Paul Riedel
（NASA。 U.S. National Archives and Records Administration 所蔵） / Public domain (cropped) - Visualizing the State of Lubrication: “Newton Mess Iridescence” Dicklyon / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (田中真二研究室): “Digger arm in silhouette - geograph.org.uk - 5661443” David Lally / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (古川研究室
（再生医工学研究室） ): “Line of culture flask ( )” Jean-Etienne Minh-Duy Poirrier from USA / CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped) - Related lab (前田研究室): “Inflatable Robotic Arm” Z22 / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (齊藤卓志研究室): “Natural-convection-heat-sink-fluid-WBG” User:Isofilm / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
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