Patent ID: 7251893

Claim:
A method of reducing the wear between two contacting materials, comprising the step of: moving a first material in contact with a second material in an environment, wherein a first surface of said first material is in contact with a second surface of said second material, wherein said first material is glass, metal, plastic, or polymer; said second material is glass, metal, plastic, or polymer; and said first surface, said second surface, or both surfaces is coated with a polyelectrolyte multilayer, wherein said polyelectrolyte multilayer consists essentially of a plurality of alternating layers of polyelectrolyte, wherein each alternating layer of polyelectrolyte is independently selected from the group consisting of a linear or branched poly(acrylic acid), poly(allylamine hydrochloride), poly(ethylene imine), sulfonated polystyrene, and poly(2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propane-sulfonic acid); thereby decreasing the wear of said first material, said second material, or both materials compared to the wear in the absence of said polyelectrolyte multilayer.