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البحـث الأول
مجلة النفط والتعاون العربي
161
العدد
- 2017
أربعون
المجلد الثالث و ال
2016
أوابك العلمية لعام
�
ص لبحوث العلمية الفائزة بجائزة
�
عدد خا
19
9
Executive Summary
* Lubricats are known ever since man invented machines. They were either made
from animal fat or vegetable oil. Petroleum lubricants were a byproduct of
refining oil by 1880. In 1923 engine oils were classified according to viscocity.
Lubrication manufacturers used clay and acid treatment to remove undesirables.
* Additives to inhibit oxidation, resist corrosion, enhance pour points, improve
viscosity index emerged in the 1930s. In the 1950s, synthetic lubricants and
multigrade engine oils were introduced and hydro-treating to improve lube oils
in the 1960s. So came catalytic dewaxing and wax hydro-isomerization was used
since 1993 to improve pour point.
* The increased use of lubricating oils generated the problem of the used oil and
dumping in the environment. The first re-refining activities were reported in
Germany in 1921 by simple treatment of used oil or using for fuel purposes.
During the Second World War processing gained ground and the technology of
simple distillation to acid clay treatment was used.
* The increase of oil prices and the tightening of environmental regulations
stimulated growth in recycling and re-refining and the processes were developed
to keep pace with the increasing quality demanded by the market. The first hydro-
treating re-refiner was in the State of North Carolina which continued to work
until 1983 where KTI process was developed and the first re-refinery was built in
California. The newly acquired euphoria for re-refining was driven by further
surges of oil prices in the early 1980s which led to higher base oil prices and
better margins for re-refiners.
* In Europe, Germany has been re-refining used lubricants for more than 50 years
and in Italy, Viscolube was founded in 1963 and Europe became the front runner
of re-refining while processing for fuel continued. In Asia, the re-refining
industry was slow to pick up.
* The collection of used oils is the hardest step in a chain of salvaging the resource
whether for energy recovery or re-refining. The re-refining or fuel processing
plant location should be decided to minimize the cost of convenient collection
which must be regulated by the government.