PERTANIKA JOURNAL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

 

e-ISSN 2231-8526
ISSN 0128-7680

Home / Regular Issue / JST Vol. 31 (5) Aug. 2023 / JST-3878-2022

 

Innovative Formulation and Characterisation of Grease Made from Waste Engine Oil

Muhammad Auni Hairunnaja, Mohd Aizudin Abd Aziz, Nurul Waheeda Abdu Rahman, Mohd Azmir Arifin, Khairuddin Md Isa and Umi Fazara Md Ali

Pertanika Journal of Science & Technology, Volume 31, Issue 5, August 2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.47836/pjst.31.5.17

Keywords: Fumed Silica (FS), grease formulation, waste engine oil (WEO)

Published on: 31 July 2023

Lubricating grease is usually produced from mineral oil, making the relationship between grease and mineral oil unavoidable. Formulation of grease from waste oil can reduce the dependency of the grease industry on mineral oil as well as help to reduce the waste generation of used oil. This study aims to produce fumed silica (FS) grease from waste engine oil (WEO) and analyse the properties of the formulated grease. The method started with treating WEO to remove any contaminants in the used oil. After that, the greases are produced using a weight percentage ratio before being examined for consistency, oil separation, oil bleeding, FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) analysis, and corrosiveness. In terms of uniformity, oil separation, and oil bleeding, WEO percentage content had a substantial impact on the findings. The FTIR demonstrated that synthetic greases had the same spectra when evaluated between 500 cm-1 and 4000 cm-1. The grease's corrosiveness is low, as determined by class 1 corrosiveness toward the copper strip. However, the grease properties differ when consistency, oil bleeding and oil separation test is done. Higher oil content in grease produced high oil bleeding and separation but low consistency. As a conclusion of the results, fumed silica grease with oil percentages of 83 and 82 have the most grease-like features, showing that the grease fits the traits' requirements. Based on the investigation's findings, it was established that WEO may be used as a base oil in grease formulation and that the grease's properties are satisfactory.

  • Abdulbari, H. A., Abid, R. T., & Mohammad, A. H. A. (2008). Fume silica base grease. Journal of Applied Sciences, 8(4), 687-691. https://doi.org/10.3923/jas.2008.687.691

  • Abdulbari, H. A., Rosli, M. Y., Abdurrahman, H. N., & Nizam, M. K. (2011). Lubricating grease from spent bleaching earth and waste cooking oil: Tribology properties. Academic Journals, 6(20), 4695-4699. https://doi.org/10.5897/IJPS11.561

  • Adhvaryu, A., Sung, C., & Erhan, S. (2005 ). Fatty acids and antioxidant effects on grease microstructures. Industrial Crops and Products, 21(3), 285-291. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2004.03.003

  • ASTM D4048-16e1. (2018). Standard Test method for detection of copper corrosion. ASTM International. http://www.astm.org/

  • Barthel, H., Rösch, L., & Weis, J. (2005). Fumed silica - Production, properties, and applications. In N. Auner, & J. Weis (Eds.), Organosilicon Chemistry Set: From Molecules to Materials (pp. 761-778). Wiley. https://doi.org/10.1002/9783527620777.ch91a

  • Casserly, E., Langlais, T., Springer, S. P., Kumar, A., & Mallory, B. (2018). The effect of base oils on thickening and physical properties of lubricating greases. The European Lubricants Industry Magazine, 144, 32-37.

  • Cyriac, F., Lugt, P. M., Bosman, R., Padberg, C. J., & Venner, C. H. (2016). Effect of thickener particle geometry and concentration on the grease EHL film thickness at medium speeds. Tribology Letters, 61, Article 18.

  • Daniel, R., & Paulus, T. (2018). Lock gates and other closures in hydraulic projects. Butterworth-Heinemann.

  • Doyle, D. (2015). General Grease Overview and Bearing Lubrication. ALS Tribology.

  • Epshteyn, Y., & Risdon, T. J. (2010, January 28-30). Molybdenum disulfide in lubricant applications - A review. In Proceedings of the 12 Lubricating Grease Conference. Goa, India. http://www.nlgi-india.org/images/PDF/Yakov%20Ephsteyn.pdf

  • Fan, X., Li, W., Li, H., Zhu, M., Xia, Y., & Wang, J. (2018). Probing the effect of thickener on tribological properties of lubricating greases. Tribology International, 118, 128-139. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.triboint.2017.09.025

  • Fink, J. (2021). Petroleum engineer's guide to oil field chemicals and fluids (3rd ed.). Gulf Professionall Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1016/C2020-0-02705-2

  • Gonçalves, D., Graça, B., Campos, A. V., Seabra, J., Leckner, J., & Westbroek, R. (2015). Formulation, rheology and thermal ageing of polymer greases - Part I: Influence of the thickener content. Tribology International, 87, 160-170. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.triboint.2015.02.018

  • Ha, S. W., Weitzmann, M. N., & Beck, G. R., Jr. (2013). Chapter 4 - Dental and skeletal applications of silica-based nanomaterials. In K. Subramani, W. Ahmed, & J. K. Hartsfield, Jr. (Eds.), Nanobiomaterials in Clinical Dentistry (pp. 69-91). William Andrew Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-1-4557-3127-5.00004-0

  • Hegazi, S. E. F., Mohamd, Y. A., & Hassan, M. I. (2017). Recycling of waste engine oil using different acids as washing agents. International Journal of Oil, Gas and Coal Engineering, 5(5), 69-74. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ogce.20170505.11

  • Japar, N. S. A., Aziz, M. A. A., & Razali, M. N. (2014). Formulation of lubricating grease using Beeswax thickener. In IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering (Vol. 342, No. 1, p. 012007). IOP Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/342/1/012007

  • Japar, N. S. A., Aziz, M. A. A., & Razali, M. N. (2018, August 28-29). Fundamental study of waste oil potential as base oil alternative in grease formulation. In Proceeding of 2018 National Conference for Postgraduate Research (pp. 208-212). Pahang, Malaysia.

  • Japar, N. S. A., Aziz, M. A. A., Razali, M. N., & Rahman, N. W. A. (2018). Grease and its application on electrical equipment: A review. International Journal of Engineering & Technology, 7(3.26), 23-39. https://doi.org/http://dx.doi.org/10.14419/ijet.v7i3.26.17455

  • Japar, N. S. A., Aziz, M. A. A., & Razali, M. N. (2019). Formulation of fumed silica grease from waste transformer oil as base oil. Egyptian Journal of Petroleum, 28(1), 91-96. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejpe.2018.12.001

  • Japar, N. S. A., Aziz, M. A. A., Razali, M. N., Zakaria, N. A., & Rahman, N. W. A. (2019). Preparation of grease using organic thickener. Materials Today: Proceedings, 19(4), 1303-1308. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matpr.2019.11.141

  • Lugt, P. M. (2013). Condition monitoring and maintenance. In Grease Lubrication in Rolling Bearings (pp. 283-337). Wiley.

  • Misozi, D. M., Victor, M., Ebelia, M., & Chanda, T. P. (2018). Mineral base oil recovery from waste lubricant grease. Rwanda Journal of Engineering Science Technology and Environment, 1(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.4314/rjeste.v1i1.7S

  • Mudalip, S. K. A., Yeung, S. L. C., Sazwani, S., & Yunus, R. M. (2012). Production of high temperature grease from waste lubricant sludge and silicone oil. Journal of Applied Sciences, 12(11), 1171-1175. https://doi.org/10.3923/jas.2012.1171.1175

  • Nabi, M. N., Akhter, M. S., & Rahman, M. A. (2013). Waste transformer oil as an alternative fuel for diesel engine. Procedia Engineering, 56, 401-406. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2013.03.139

  • Rahman, M. R., Hui, J. L. C., & Hamdan, S. B. (2018). 5 - Nanoclay dispersed phenol formaldehyde/fumed silica nanocomposites: Effect of diverse clays on physicomechanical and thermal properties. In M. R. Rahman (Ed.), Silica and Clay Dispersed Polymer Nanocomposites (Preparation, Properties and Applications) (pp. 59-70). Woodhead Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-102129-3.00005-1

  • Rahman, N. W. A., Japar, N. S. A., Aziz, M. A. A., Razik, A. H. A., & Yunus, M. Y. M. (2019). Sodium grease formulation from waste engine oil. In 2019 9th International Conference on Future Environment an Energy, IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science (Vol. 257, Article 012018). IOP Publishing.

  • Rizvi, S. Q. A. (2009). A Comprehensive Review of Lubricant Chemistry, Technology, Selection, and Design. ASTM. https://doi.org/10.1520/mnl59-eb

  • Santos, P. H. S., Carignano, M. A., & Campanella, O. H. (2011). Qualitative study of thixotropy in gelled hydrocarbon fuels. Engineering Letters, 19(1), 13-19.

  • Vansant, E. F., Van der Voort, P., & Vrancken, K. C. (1995). Characterization and chemical modification of the silica surface. Elsevier.

  • Tsai, W. T. (2011). An analysis of used lubricant recycling, energy utilization and its environmental benefit in Taiwan. Energy, 36(7), 4333-4339. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.energy.2011.04.008

  • Whitby, C. P. (2020). Structuring edible oils with fumed silica particles. Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 4, Article 585160. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsufs.2020.585160

  • Zakani, B., Ansari, M., & Grecov, D. (2018). Dynamic rheological properties of a fumed silica grease. Rheologica Acta, 57, 83-94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00397-017-1064-6