Obtaining lubricant bio-grease from vegetal oil used in cooking

Abstract

Currently, the lubricating greases on the market are products based on mineral oil, which are finally discarded, generating great pollution in the environment; on the other hand, the vegetable oil used in cooking is almost always disposed of through a sink, a landfill or a sewer, without prior treatment, causing environmental problems as a consequence. The objective of this research was to obtain a lubricating bio-fat by reusing vegetable oil used in kitchens in frying processes. To carry out this research, sodium hydroxide was used to obtain the soap and recycled oil to carry out the saponification process and as a base oil to obtain the fat. In this investigation, eight different formulations were made, with variations in the amounts of NaOH and antifoam, finally a formulation was obtained, whose soap was formed by 40 ml of used oil plus 40 ml of sodium hydroxide and its base was 80%. of the same used oil, presented physical-chemical characteristics similar to commercial fats on the market. In conclusion, the obtained lubricating grease is a grade 2 grease, according to the National Institute of Lubricating Greases, it is a soft grease suitable for use in bearings, bearings and valves, which can be subjected to temperatures not exceeding 160 °C, where the presence of water is minimal, it can also be used in structures exposed to the air.