ISSUE NO 44 AUGUST 2018

ISSN 1756 560X

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Lubricants can’t be green . . .can they?By John Sander, Vice President of Technology, Lubrication Engineers, Inc.

Today, many want to “go green” in variousaspects of their lives. The question is whatdoes this mean? It is typically meant to be abusiness or lifestyle choice to act in environ-mentally friendly ways. Is “green” a legitimateterm or is it just marketing fluff meant to sellproduct, promote a company, or make us feelgood? The answers to this question can varyfrom person to person, business to business,and even government to government.Common terms that have been used to definesomething as green include: renewable,recyclable, reusable, nontoxic or less toxic,energy conserving, and waste reducing.

The goal of this paper is to show thatan unlikely industry – lubrication – can be verygreen through responsibly planned purchas-ing, storage, use and disposal; and tochallenge the limited regulatory view of greenlubricants that fails to consider longerubricant and component life, and decreasedenergy use.

The lubricants industry is part of themuch larger petroleum industry. In the after-math of catastrophic accidents, such as theDeepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf ofMexico and the grounding of the ExxonValdez near Alaska, both of which resulted inhigh profile ecological damage caused byhuge amounts of crude oil being spilled intothe environment, petroleum has developeda reputation as being a dirty industry.Incidences such as these are evidence thatsome organizations in the exploration,production and transportation segments ofthe petroleum industry have contributed tothat negative reputation and continue to havetheir challenges, but the entire petroleumindustry should not be found guilty byassociation. In fact, this industry has madepossible many of the products that areresponsible for the quality of life enjoyed byincreasing numbers of people around theworld.

Green DefinitionsThe term “green” has various synonyms:

environmentally friendly, environmentallyacceptable, and sustainable, just to name a few.Most of the terms used over the years haveinvolved how something we do (or use) affectsthe natural environment in which we live, includ-ing air, water, soil and the natural organisms thatlive in them. The goal of green initiatives is toconserve resources, produce less waste, andminimize pollution. Todaymany organizations areembracing “sustainability” as the best way todescribe these initiatives.

The U.S. Environmental ProtectionAgency provides this explanation: “Sustainabilityis important tomaking sure that we have andwillcontinue to have, the water, materials, andresources to protect human health and ourenvironment”1. The United Nations hosted the2005 World Summit, during which it was notedthat sustainability requires the reconciliation ofenvironmental, social equity and economicdemands, called the “three pillars” of sustain-

ability as shown in Fig. 1.3 This Venn diagram ofsustainability indicates that the three pillars arenot mutually exclusive and can be mutuallyreinforcing. Although this description of sustain-ability is not universally accepted, it has becomeby many organizations and governments.

The chemical industry was ahead of thegame. The industry actually began to considerenvironmental issues along with economic issuesprior to the U.N.’s 2005 World Summit. Early inthe summer of 1997, the Chemical Manufactur-ers Association, American Chemical Society, theU.S. EPA, and various other groups sponsoredthe first Green Chemistry and EngineeringConference in Washington, D.C.

Paul Anderson, President of ACS at thattime, said that green chemistry “challenges usto look at the entire life cycle of chemicalproduction to create new ways to moreefficiently produce useful products with lesswaste – or preferably no waste.”

Per Paul Tebo, then Vice President forsafety, health and environment at DuPont, saidthat green chemistry will focus on the following:• Reducing emissions and waste with goal ofzero emissions

• Efficiency in use of materials, energy andwater, including substantial use of recycled andreused materials and growing reliance onrenewable resources

• Inherently safer processes, distribution andproducts

• Reducing total system impact through toolssuch as life-cycle assessment

• Creating significant customer and societalvalue per unit of resources extracted

• Creating significant shareholder value2Contrary to popular belief, most

lubricants – when properly used – could beconsidered environmentally considerate. Why?Lubricants reduce friction, which results in areduction of energy consumption and increased

equipment life. A properly formulated lubricantlasts longer, therefore generating less waste. Theend users, original equipmentmanufacturers andgovernment agencies still expect this perform-ance, but are now also requesting low impact ifthe lubricant is released into the environment.During the vehicle design process, for example,lubricant formulations are being specified thatwill reduce engine emissions in vehicles withinternal combustion engines.

Lubricants today can be formulatedusing high-performance biobased materials andmeet themore traditional definitions of environ-mentally friendly, such as being biodegradable,low toxicity and non bioaccumulative. Theremainder of this paper will point out variousways that lubricants can be green.

Lubricant FormulationTraditionally, when a lubricant was

formulated, it contained a mixture of two mainingredients: oil and additives. For grease, a thirdingredient was added – a thickener. In moderntimes, formulation still follows this basicmixture,but within that the options have expandeddramatically, as many types of natural andsynthetic base fluids can be used as the base ofa lubricant, not just petroleum oil. Additives areincluded to impart beneficial performanceattributes, such as reduced friction (wearprevention), corrosion protection, heat removal(oxidation resistance), foam and air release, andwater separation or emulsion, just to name afew. Table 1 illustrates four key areas thatformulators must consider when formulatingproducts: environmental, performance, physicaland commercial.

The primary attribute desired by mostend users from their lubricant is that it protectstheir asset from wear; therefore, increasing theasset’s reliability and useful lifespan. For manyregulators, the primary concern is that the

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Figure 1: Venn Diagram of Sustianable Development: at the Confluence of Three Constituent Parts3

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lubricant be environmentally friendly. For theseagencies, lubricating properties are secondary, ifconsidered at all. One of the first governmentregulations that directly affects lubricants is theU.S. EPA’s 2013 Vessel General Permit amend-ment made to the National Pollution Dischargeand Emission System rules of the Clean WaterAct. The basis of this regulation is that all vesselsgreater than 79 feet long must use environmen-tally acceptable lubricants in all oil-to-sea inter-faces, unless technically infeasible.

By the EPA’s description, environmen-tally acceptable lubricants are biodegradable,minimally toxic and not bioaccumulative. TheVGP went into effect Dec. 19, 2013.4 Thisregulation provides no regulatory requirementsfor lubrication performance. It only regulates thethree properties mentioned.

Yet, lubricants can be green in manyways that still consider performance,more in linewith companies’ aims in pursuit of sustainability.It’s time to look at the more holistic view ofgreen lubricants.

Holistic view of green lubricantsThe traditional environmental lubricant

has been one that has been either proven to bebiodegradable or is formulated from biobasedmaterials. Yet, from a more holistic standpoint,lubricants have been environmentally friendly inanother way for years. If the proper productformulated for an application is chosen, it canimprove equipment efficiency. As compared tothe lubricants even 50 years ago, today’slubricants can be formulated to provide a muchhigher level of equipment protection andperformance. If the sustainability model of greenis considered, they can bemore environmentallyfriendly, provide betterperformance, and improvethe economic bottom line.Let’s look at some wayslubricants can be green.

RenewablePetroleum crude oil

has long been thought of asa non-renewable naturalresource. It is formed deepwithin the stratified rockthat is part of the earth’scrust. Crude oil is locatedand extracted from the rockand refined into manymaterials, including minerallubricating oils. Technically,natural process could createmore oil, but not withinthe lifetime of anybodycurrently living, thus forpractical purposes it is a limited resource that willeventually run out. For many years, doomsayershave pronounced the impending end of petro-leum crude oil. In 2014, BP estimated that wehad 53 years’ worth of oil left in the ground ifwe continued with current production and usagerates.5

Through improved exploration tech-niques, increased use of hydraulic fracturing, andenhanced recovery processes; this number has

increased over the years, even though worldpopulation continues to grow. In addition, effortshave been made to produce oil from renewablevegetable, animal and algae sources – canola,soybeans and cattle, to name a few. Theseefforts represent a return to the lubricants usedby humans long before petroleum crude wasfound and refined. These sources are consideredrenewable, because they come from liveorganisms. Petroleum oil took millions of yearsto form in the ground. Renewable productsgrow, are harvested, and are turned intoproducts within a relatively short time.

Most oils taken directly from animal andvegetable sources, however, do not yield stablelubricants. It is this instability that makes themhighly biodegradable, an environmentaladvantage. Much research has been conductedon renewable oils since the late 1980s; throughgenetic modifications and chemical processing,some of their insufficiencies are being overcome.Unfortunately, this usually results in base fluidsthat that can be more expensive than mineraloils.

Biodegradable, low ecotoxicity,non bioaccumulative

Early environmentally acceptablelubricants were made from biobased materialsor were biodegradable; most were formulatedusing vegetable oil based fluids. Concessionsoften had to bemade by the users when puttingthese products into service. They typically wouldbecome jelly-like at low temperatures andoxidize rapidly at operating temperatures. Theywere also more expensive than their mineral oilcounterparts. This meant that for a user to

employ green lubricants they had to pay morefor a product that didn’t perform as well. Therewere notmany laws in place forcing users to buythem, so only hardcore environmentalists usedthem.

Governments are beginning to putmoreemphasis on EALs by enacting laws, such as theU.S. EPA VGP laws, making it more difficult forcompanies to avoid using them. Fortunately,many options are available today through

genetically improved vegetable oils or high-performance synthetic fluids, so that higherperforming products can be formulated to over-come the low- and high-temperature concernsof the early products. Along with biodegradabil-ity, toxicology has become part of the require-ment for a lubricant to be green, meaning thatformulators now must also consider ecotoxicityand bioaccumulation.

Government laws, such as the EPA VGP,set forth quantifiable requirements to show thata lubricant is an EAL. While the VGP is a self-certifying program, there are also marketingbased approvals, such as the European Union’sEcolabel, that include specific test requirements,product formula audits, and fees paid forregistration and use of their approval logo. Theseapprovals do not place any requirements onlubrication performance, however, just onbiodegradability, toxicity and bioaccumulation.The typical tests for evaluating lubricants andlubricant ingredients for these three propertiesare listed in Table 26,7, followed by a summary ofthe requirements for each.

BiodegradabilityBiodegradability is a measure of the

persistence, or breakdown rate, of a substancethrough biological action while in the naturalenvironment. Most of the tests listed in Table 2evaluate biodegradability through the conversionof the lubricant from a hydrocarbon to amore basic molecule, carbon dioxide, throughmetabolism and respiration of microorganisms,such as bacteria.

Biodegradable products are identified asreadily or inherently biodegradable. This isdetermined by the percentage with which theybiodegrade to their natural state, whensubjected to sunlight, water and microbialactivity, in 28 days. Products are considered“readily biodegradable” if they biodegradeanywhere from 60-100%. “Inherently biodegrad-able” products are those that will biodegradefrom 20-60%.8

EcotoxicityEcotoxicity is a measure of the toxicity

of a chemical substance to organisms in theenvironment. The tests listed in Table 2 employspecies that are used to provide indications

of whether a chemical is either acutely orchronically toxic to the environment. Althoughthis list contains almost exclusively marineorganisms, there are also tests that use plants,bacteria and various other organisms. Frequently,the result will be presented as an EC (effectiveconcentration) value or LC (lethal concentration)value.

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Environmental Performance Physical Commercial

Ecotoxicity Compatibility State Marketability

Biodegradability Wear reduction Rheology Packaging

Bioaccumulation Oxidation Tackiness Storage

Renewable Corrosion Odour Disposal

Recyclable Water Separation Volatility Personnel

Foaming Colour Cost/Price

TABLE 1: Planning consideration areas

Biodegradability Toxicity Bioaccumulation

ASTM D6006: Assessing ASTM D6081: Aquatic Toxicity OECD 107: Partition Coefficient,

Biodegradability of Hydraulic Fluids Testing shake flask method

ASTM D5864: Determining Aerobic OECD 201: Freshwater Alga and OECD 117: Partition Coefficient,

Aquatic Biodegradation / OECD 3018 Cyanobacteria, Growth Inhibition HPLC Method

Freshwater Modified Sturm Test Test

ASTM D6319: Determining Areobic OECD 202: Daphnia sp., Acute

Aquatic Biodegradation, Gledhill Shake Immobilization and Reproduction

Flask / OECD 301D: Freshwater Closed Test

Bottle Test

ASTM D6731: Determining Aerobic, OECD 203: Fish, Acute Toxicity Test

Aquatic Biodegradability, Closed

Respirometer / OECD 301E: Modified

Biodegradation Test

TABLE 2: Common consideration standards for lubricants

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BioaccumulationBioaccumulation is a process through

which chemicals are taken up by organismseither directly from exposure to a contaminatedenvironment or by consumption of foodcontaining the chemical. For bioaccumulativecompounds, the principal route of movementinto and through aquatic food webs appears tobe dietary ingestion rather than bioconcentrationfromwater because these compounds generallyexhibit low water solubility and tend to concen-trate in the lipid fractions of biological tissues.6

Therefore, the tests evaluate the partitioncoefficient, or the tendency of a compound toseparate from water. Typically, materials areevaluated for separation into octanol or water.The ones that prefer octanol could accumulate inthe fat of organisms and bioaccumulate.

Cradle to grave, cradle to cradleWhen the environmental movement

began, many people wanted to see producers ofmaterials, such as lubricants, be responsible forthem from “cradle to grave,” or from inceptionthrough use and disposal. In 2002, scientistDr. Michael Braungart and architect WilliamMcDonough published their book Cradle toCradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things,which called for a transformation of humanindustry through ecologically intelligent design.9They suggested that the things we use must bedesigned in an ecologically sustainable mannercreating what could be considered a circularproduct life cycle. Two ways to accomplish this

are reuse and recycling.For convenience, many things made

today are disposable. They are used once ortwice and then thrown away. This means thatthey end up in a disposal resting place, such as alandfill, or irresponsibly tossed aside as pollution.Most lubricants are liquid-based; they are some-times poured out and seep into soil or water,which contaminates a natural resource that weneed to live. Any effort to reuse or recyclelubricants is green.

ReuseSome lubricant packaging, such as steel

drums and bulk transfer tanks, can be emptied,sent back, refurbished and refilled with newlubricants or other chemicals. However, mostlubricants cannot be reused because ofdegradation and contamination. Some end usershave tried to reuse lubricants with limitedsuccess. For example, used lubricants are some-times applied to moving chains. This is notconsidered a best lubrication practice butsuccess varies depending upon condition of theused lubricant. Another reuse for lubricants isthat they are collected and burned as heating fueloil. The fuel is needed as an energy source, sothis approach is more green than dumping intoa landfill or pouring into the environment.

RecyclingAn entire new segment of the lubricants

industry exists called re-refiners. In the infancy ofre-refining, waste oil collectors would take spent

lubricant back to their facility, remove the water,filter out the solids, and resell it for variouslubrication uses. Modern re-refiners collect theused lubricant, take it to their facility, removewater and solids, but then – unlike their prede-cessors – they introduce it into a refinery processjust like crude oil. After processing, new high-quality base oils are produced that have beenfound to be of equal or better quality to virginbase oils. These can be used to produce newlubricants, starting the process over. This hasbeen called a “closed loop” process.10

Resource conservingYet another way things can be consid-

ered green is that they reduce the amount ofnatural resources that must be used to producethem. There are various ways this can beachieved when using lubricants. One of themainpurposes of lubricants is to reduce friction,which minimizes equipment wear. Laws ofphysics can be used to show that two surfaceswith a lower coefficient of friction run moreefficiently and consume less power. Powerconsumption can be measured in several ways,including fuel economy, electrical consumptionor productivity (units/hour or similar).

These efforts can be converted intomonetary figures, meaning that they can createeconomic benefits in addition to the environ-mental benefits of using fewer resources.Occasionally, it can even be shown that themoney saved is more than the amount that mayhave been spent on a more expensive lubricantor a lubricant that needed to be changed morefrequently.11

Because of concerns with climatechange, an important initiative pursued by manyof the world’s governments is to reduce green-house gas emissions. Power plants, businessesand individuals are inspired to reduce theircarbon footprint. As an example of how thisaffects engine oils, the most recent diesel andgasoline engine emission regulations haveincluded requirements for fuel economyimprovements as a means of reducing carbondioxide emissions. Aside from vehicle aerody-namics and engine upgrades, engine lubricantswere also affected. OEMs have begun to requiredecreases in viscosity grade recommendationswithout sacrificing engine durability. Certainengine oil ingredient levels are regulated so thatthey do not negatively impact vehicle emissionsystem equipment. Aside from reducingenvironmental impact, the lubricants are being

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Biodegradability

Bioaccumulation

Cradle to Cradle by Braumgart & McDonough

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required to protect the physical assets, makingthem last longer.

In addition to extending the life of theasset, the lubricant itself can be formulatedto last longer. Proper selection of lubricantingredients can result in products that arecapable of extended drain performance. MostOEMs make lubrication drain interval recom-mendations that are based on the lifespan of thetypical lubricant that would be used in the equip-ment. Through proper base fluid and additiveselection, it is possible to formulate lubricantproducts that operate for extended periodsof time under proper maintenance withoutneeding to be changed. The result in this case isless lubricant purchased, less used lubricantdisposed, less maintenance labour, andultimately less financial resources spent. Less oil,as a natural resource, is consumed; therefore,extending drain intervals is a green activity.However, drain intervals should not be extendedwithout normal filter changes and monitoringthrough oil analysis.

Improved reliabilityUltimately, a successful green lubricant

programme is the responsibility of the end user.A world class lubrication reliability programmeimproves equipment reliability and uptime withthe fringe benefit of creating a holistic greenlubricant programme. It could be argued that thecornerstone of a successful green lubricantprogramme is a lubricant-centered reliabilityprogramme.

This includes training employees, as well

as keeping lubricants clean and dry with filtra-tion, desiccation and fill level monitoring. If anoil analysis programme is also included in thereliability programme, drain intervals can beoptimized so that good lubricant is not disposedof before necessary. Finally, when tools suchas automatic lubrication systems are used,machines run more efficiently and use lessenergy.

Numerous case studies have shown thatwhen lubrication reliability programmes areimplemented, companies reduce costs andimprove their profitability, thus becoming moresustainable economically as well as environmen-tally.

ConclusionIt may be surprising, but lubricants can

truly be green. While many people look at greenlubricants just as biodegradable, low toxicity andnon bioaccumulative, this paper has shown thatlubricants can be considered green in otherways as well. The limited standard imposed byregulatory agencies does not fully consider howlubricants can be considered green. Forexample, the potential for a world classlubrication reliability programme to lead toenergy savings and extension of lubricant andcomponent life ought to be considered as part ofa holistic view of what it means to be green.

It is up to the end user to take advan-tage of as many of these green options aspossible. The question then becomes: “Where doI start?” The recommendation of this authorwould be to start at the end. Almost none of the

green lubricant options discussed in this paperare going to be as green as they can be withouta world class lubrication reliability programme.Implementing a lubrication reliability programmeis a daunting task; it is often described as ajourney. To help with this journey, companiesshould choose a lubricant supplier that can be apartner – not just a supplier. In the end, asuccessful implementation will result in improvedenvironmental, economic and social (personneland customers) sustainability: the three pillars ofsustainability.

The answer to the question, “Canlubricants be green?” is an unequivocal yes!

References:1 EPA, www.epa.gov/sustainability/basicinfo.htm#sustainability (Last accessedNov. 7, 2013).

2 Wilkinson,S.,“Green Is Practical, Even Profitable,”Chem.Eng.News,Vol.75,No.31, 1997.

3 Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sustainability (Last accessed Nov 7., 2013).4 EPA, https://www.epa.gov/npdes/vessels-vgp (Last accessed 26 May 2017).5 NASDAQ, http://www.nasdaq.com/article/how-much-oil-is-left-in-the-earth-cm711409 (Last accessed May 30, 2017).

6 ASTM Standard Methods, ASTM International, http://www.astm.org (Lastaccessed Dec. 4, 2013).

7 OECD,Guidelines for Testing of Chemicals, OECD Publishing, http://www.oecd-ilibrary. org/environment/oecd- guidelines-for-the-testing-of-chemicals_chem_guide_pkg-en (Last accessed Dec 4., 2013).

8 OECD, Guidelines for Testing of Chemicals Test 301b: Ready Biodegradability,Section 3, OECD Publishing, Paris, 1992.

9 McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry, https://mbdc.com/project/cradle-to-cradle-book/ (Last accessed May 7, 2017).

10 Safety-Klean, http://www.safety-kleen.com/products-services/oil-solutions(Last accessed May 7, 2017).

11 Sander, J. “Often Overlooked: Lubricants can Help Lower Energy Consump-tion,” Lubrication Engineers, Inc., http://www.lelubricants.com/lit/news/White%20Papers/lec.pdf (Last Accessed May 7, 2017).

LE International LtdThe Old Brewery CourtHigh StreetTheale RG7 5AHTel: +44 (0)118 930 4321Email: info@le-international.comwww.le-international.com

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A leader in lubricants since 1951, Lubrication Engineers,Inc., makes reliability easy for its customers, creatingsolutions for even the toughest lubrication challenges ina variety of industriesworldwide.LE boosts profits throughlonger equipment life, extended service intervals,reduction in energy use, fewer repairs and less inventory.LE’s arsenal includes highly trained consultants, techni-cal expertise, a full complement of reliability productsand services, and a comprehensive line of enhancedindustrial and automotive lubricants manufactured at itsplant inWichita, Kan.The lubricants are formulated fromhighly refined or synthetic base oils and proprietaryadditives, ensuring that they exceed the performanceof ordinary oils and greases. Lubrication Engineersoperates under an ISO 9001 Certified Quality System.

lubrication engineers

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