ARS | Publication request: Improved biobased lubricants from chemically modified vegetable oils

Submitted to: World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioprocessing
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: March 17, 2011
Publication Date: N/A

Technical Abstract: Vegetable oils possess a number of desirable properties for lubricant application such as excellent boundary properties, high viscosity index, low volatility, low traction coefficient, renewability, and biodegradability. Unfortunately, they also have a number of weaknesses that make them less desirable for lubricant applications. Examples of such weaknesses include poor oxidation stability, unacceptably high pour point and cloud point, poor hydrolytic stability, and low biostability. Various approaches are being investigated to improve the inherent weaknesses of vegetable oils without negatively impacting their desirable properties. In the work described here, vegetable oils were chemically modified and their tribological properties investigated. The result showed that chemical modification can improve oxidation and cold flow properties of vegetable oils without causing serious negative impact on other tribological properties.