Publisher’s Note

Throughout the world, tightening environmental legislation has lead to stricter performance standards. This is forcing the need for high performance lubricants. The introduction of all-hydroprocessed Group II and Group III base oils in the mid 90s made tighter specifications possible. These base oils have high oxidation stability, low volatility for a given viscosity grade and are essentially sulphur-free. In automotive engine oils, by far the largest market for base oils, there is an increasing trend to low and mid SAPS specifications (Sulphated Ash, Phosphorous and Sulphur) and lighter viscosity grades. Due to their high sulphur content, Group I base oils cannot be used in formulations designed to meet these specifications. Formulators must use Group II or Group III base oils. These base oils significantly improve the performance of many industrial oils and greases as well. The increased demand for all-hydro processed Group II and III base oils has lead to significant production expansion globally. In North America, over 60% of the supply is already Group II quality or higher. Given the increasing demand for Group II and III base oils and the corresponding declining demand for Group I base oils, some high cost Group I manufacturing facilities are vulnerable to closure. As the market evolves, it is important that lubricant manufacturers have a secure and ‘future-proof’ base oil supply strategy in place.

Growing industrialisation and the need to meet higher-quality motor oil specifications is driving demand. New formulations will emphasize these characteristics:

• lighter viscosity grades for increased fuel economy
• low volatility for reduced oil consumption
• improved oxidation and thermal stability for longer drain intervals
• improved high-temperature, high shear (HTHS) viscosity characteristics for application to modern engine designs.

Many of these characteristics are also highly desirable in greases. Producing a low-viscosity and low-volatility lubricant requires a highly paraffnic, high viscosity index (VI) base stock. High oxidation stability and thermal stability are obtained by using base stocks that contain minimal amounts of unstable aromatics. Base stocks that have these qualities include synthetics such as polyalphaolefns (PAO) and hydroprocessed mineral base oils.

When you are choosing base oil, there will be trade-offs in the lubricant properties required for the application. A common example is viscosity. Higher viscosity provides adequate film strength, while lower viscosity offers low-temperature fluidity and lower energy consumption. In some cases, you may prefer to have a balance between the two so there isn’t too much of a compromise on either side.

Although it’s not necessarily important to understand the way in which the oil was manufactured, it is critical to know the available base oil options and the advantages and disadvantages they provide. Optimizing your lubricant selection can help minimize the incidence for machine failure. While synthetics are justifiably more expensive than mineral oil, the cost of equipment failure is typically much higher. If cost is a key factor in your decision, be sure to choose wisely.

We would like to thank our readers for the great response to our previous edition’s cover story – “3 Causes of unreliable equipment and how to eliminate them” and other articles. Our current issue’s cover story is “Base OilBuilding block for Lubricants” which will help our readers to understand the performance and future trends of Base Oils.

We welcome your feedback & suggestions.

Warm regards,

Udey Dhir