Brazilian Tribology: origin, status quo and future perspectives

This first regional issue published in STMP highlights the potential and importance of the research carried out in Latin America regarding surface engineering and tribology. In order to celebrate this important initiative, a complete historical account of Brazilian tribology is presented for the first time. It initiates with the first steps of Brazilian tribology in the 1980s, followed by the evolution and expansion of tribology research both in academic centres and industry. Focus is given to two outstanding achievements of Brazilian tribology: the fully flexible engines that run at any proportion of ethanol and gasoline and a fully innovative, completely oil-less family of hermetic compressors. The status-quo of the current research groups on tribology is described. Finally, the future trends envisaged by the Brazilian tribology community are presented.