Various carbon-based particles such as graphite, carbon black, graphite nanofibers and carbon nanotubes were dispersed in mineral oil to systematically examine the effect of the size and shape of particles on the properties of friction performance. As the results of friction tests using a disc-on-disc tribotester, the friction coefficient of a disc specimen was significantly reduced when nano-sized spherical particles were suspended in mineral oil. This was attributed to the presence of spherical nanoparticles, which prevented direct contact between frictional surfaces. However, the fibrous nanoparticles with high aspect ratios deteriorated the lubrication performance between friction surfaces due to a higher degree of agglomeration.