The 4th World Tribology Congress (WTC, IV), jointly organized by Japanese Society of Tribologist and Science Council of Japan was held in Kyoto International Conference Center in Kyoto, Japan, from September 6 to September 11, 2009. Imperial Highness Prince Akishino of Japan and the President of the International Tribology Council, Prof. Peter Jost delivered an address respectively. More than 1300 delegates from more than 50 countries, who are engaged in the field of tribology, attended the grand gathering. Among them were Prof. Zhang Siwei, the former council chairman of the Tribology Institute of Chinese Mechanical Engineering Society, Prof. Xue Qunji of LICP, member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, Prof. Luo Jianbin of Tsinghua University, Prof. Li Jian of Wuhan Research Institute of Materials Protection, Prof. Yan Xinping of Wuhan University of Technology, Prof. Diao Dongfeng of Xian Jiaotong University, Prof. Zhou Zhongrong of Southwest Jiaotong University, etc. China was only second to Japan as far as the number of people attending the Congress was concerned.

Four world renowned experts in tribology from America, Britain, China and Japan, were specially invited to deliver plenary talks during the Congress. Prof. Xue’s plenary talk was entitled “Development of Industrial Tribology in China”. The talk mainly introduced the consulting project--Research on Science of Tribology and its Engineering Application and Development Strategy carried out by the Chinese Academy of Engineering in 2006, developments in tribology in railway, in tribology for water conservancy and hydropower, in automobile tribology, in space tribology and their future developing trends in China. Prof. Xue’s talk was spoken highly by Prof. Jost and the audience and they believed that “China will be the center of the research on tribology in the future”.

Besides, Prof. Xia Yanqiu of LICP was invited to deliver a presentation of “Tribological Behaviors of Nanocrystalline and Coarse-grained Nickel Coatings on Phosphor Bronze Substrates” and associate Prof. Wang Liping was invited to give a presentation with the title of “Improved Tribological Performance of Micro-Textured Amorphous Carbon Nano-composite Coatings Sliding in Water”.

The theme of the Congress covereda wide range of areas, including new lubricating grease and additives, micro/nano tribology, automobile tribology, surface engineering and texture, tribology test technology, industrial tribology, bio-tribology, history of tribology and so on. Nearly 1000 papers were collected during the Congress, which comprehensively reflected the latest research achievements in tribology worldwide. As far as the exhibition of products was concerned, nearly 50 enterprises worldwide showed their latest products and techniques in automobile field, bearing industry, gear industry, grease lubrication, solid lubrication and friction and wear technique, etc. In addition, top-level meeting between the scholars in tribology from China and Japan was held. Two sides exchanged views on management, operation, academic activities, academic conferences and publications of the tribology societies of the two countries and they suggested both sides enhance exchange and cooperation in the above-mentioned aspects to together promote the development of tribology of Asia.