The present invention comprises a method of chemical-mechanical polishing of a surface on a semiconductor substrate by providing a fixed-abrasive polishing pad; providing a surface to be polished; and providing a chemical polishing solution containing a surface tension-lowering agent that lowers the surface tension of the solution from the nominal surface tension of water to a surface tension that sufficiently wets a hydrophobic surface to be polished such that chemical-mechanical polishing is accomplished. The present invention also comprises pad improvements that mechanically sweep the polishing solution under the pad or that receive polishing solution from the back of the pad such that a tangential and radial shear is placed on the polishing solution as it flows away from the pad.