Obtaining lubricant bio-greases for engines from by-products of the African palm

Abstract

Lubricating greases are vital elements for proper operation and for extending the life of engines. At present, most of the lubricating greases on the market use mineral oil as base oil, which means that the disposal of these greases, after use, pollutes the environment, in addition to increasing prices, due to the increase in the prices of oil and its derivatives in the market generate a higher cost in the acquisition of these. The objective of this work was to obtain a lubricating bio-grease for engines, from by-products of African palm oil. For this, was used sodium hydroxide to obtain sodium soaps and, as base oil, as by-products from palm were used: crude oil, Stearin or Olein; In addition, mineral oil was used as a control. Different formulations were obtained using combinations of the oils, both in obtaining soaps and in obtaining bio-greases. As conclusions, it can be stated that a lubricating bio-grease was obtained with a composition of 93% crude palm oil, 6% sodium hydroxide and 1% defoamer, which presented physicochemical characteristics similar to commercial lubricating greases. In addition, according to the classification of the National Institute of Lubricating Greases, it could be classified as grade 2 lubricating bio-grease, that is a soft grease suitable for use in bearings, and valves, which are not subjected to high pressures or loads.