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The conference
highlighting a niche segment of the marine and automobile industry such
as one held by HINODE on “Outlook for Base Oils & Lubricants in
India” on June 1st, 2012 threw up plenty of surprises as
speakers focused on projecting the various developments and advancement
that are underway. Key executives from the base oil & lubricant
manufacturers, the oil majors and buyers, sellers and specialists took
keen interest in the new products expected to make their appearance in
the market as they are set to advance industry standards by optimizing engine performance while enabling environmental compliance for new engine designs.
Ever since the wheel was invented one can safely say that the
incessant search for the ideal base oil for lubricants and greases began
to take shape. There will always be companies coming up with offerings
of the widest range of base oils – covering the entire viscosity
spectrum, from very low to high. There will also be customized blend to
meet individual requirements. This is borne by the fact that better viscosity
control and reduced volatility helps cut lubricant consumption and
provide fuel economy benefits. Not forgetting that there is improved
equipment protection and extended lubricant life due to superior
oxidation and thermal stability.
Many
such important issues took center stage at the conference opening a
floodgate of queries and issues for lengthy deliberations. But it was
the participants’ interests on bio-lubricants and environment friendly
products that held sway during the interaction and networking sessions.
Globally marine lubricant consumption compared to other industries
is just 5 per cent and that by India is 5 per cent of this global
usage. Yet what is of concern is that oil-based chemicals routinely leak
into the sea during normal operations include fuel oils, gear oils,
hydraulic oils, marine lubricants, greases and cleaning oils, and can
reach concentrated levels with serious local impacts on water quality,
impacting fisheries and marine life and the environment at large.
The accent is now clearly on biodegradables. Lubricants
are manufactured from highly refined base oils with functional additives
present in order to give the required performance properties to suit
the intended application. A lubricant may well be formulated using a
biodegradable base oil, but with no thought given to the environmental
effects of the additives on the marine environment.
Marine
biodegradable multipurpose lubricant is deeply penetrating lubricant
that cleans, lubricates and protects. It contains superior anti-wear
additives that provide high film strength and low film thickness to
prevent metal-to-metal contact. Marine Biodegradable Multipurpose
Lubricant displaces moisture and can be applied to wet surfaces. Marine
Biodegradable Multipurpose Lubricant is greater than 60% biodegradable
making it the perfect multipurpose lubricant option for recreational and
commercial marine users.
Today
ships carry 100 different types of oils on board thus posing a
challenging task to manage the supply chain. If this can be reduced to
just 25 or 10 different types of oils it would make a world of
difference and ease the supply chain management not only for the
lubricant producer but also for the ship owner.
According
to some speakers at the conference Shell is coming out with a
multipurpose lubricant that will meet the requirements of several
applications all at the same time. Besides, Shell other companies too
are likely to follow suit. But in time to come it is possible to
rationalize the needs on board the ship. Instead of supplying various
niche types of oils it would soon be possible to provide just two or
three ingredients and depending on the requirements these could be mixed
to whatever proportion they chose in order to meet their requirement.http://www.maritimeprofessional.com/Blogs/Ecofriendly-base-oils---Lubricants-set-the-benchma/June-2012/Ecofriendly-base-oils---Lubricants-set-the-benchma.aspx
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