Fluids
Environmentally Safe Bio-Hydraulic Fluid for Compactors on Refuse Trucks
Given the higher lubricity, better performance issues and today’s extremely high cost of petroleum, the price is right for America to change to an environmentally friendly, toxicologically safe bio-hydraulic fluid.
Ira Pierce
In late 1995 while visiting a plant in Sweden that was manufacturing bio-lubricants, I was surprised to have pointed out to me that refuse trucks operating there use bio-degradable hydraulic fluid in their compactors. I recognized at that time that environmentally safe lubes were much more costly than conventional oil. That is why I began to recommend them only to a very limited segment of the U.S. market. It included the public sector and a few companies that were early adopters for strategic reasons that included their concerns for the environment, energy and geopolitical issues related to insecure petroleum. Today, we know so much more about bio-lubes, and many companies are beginning to switch over to them—basing their decisions on both their cost and performance.
Early Adopters
Bio-lubes, including hydraulic oil, were considered initially by early adaptors for the bragging right that “… they reduce our carbon footprint!” That definitely was not a good enough reason for most users to change, where cost is what rules. This was confirmed by a major attitudinal study performed for the U.S. Department of Energy, completed in 2011. The study showed that many public agencies and large to medium size private companies already are early adopters of bio-lubricants, including hydraulic fluids. Interestingly, some segments such as pile driving companies are using many of them while other companies never heard of them. Using the “Triad” approach to our own surveys—three key people from each entity, a policy person, a technical person and a sales person, were chosen for a structured interview—in almost all cases, we found that both the public agencies and private companies said that if the price was right (which meant either price competitive or even a bit more expensive) and the product behaved just as well, that they would try them. The reason: many companies have recently developed a policy that includes the objective to “lessen their carbon footprint.”
In early 2002, Shell Oil, Europe did a field trial that found that bio-hydraulic fluid performance exceeded the drain requirements of mechanical equipment manufacturers. Their engineers quit testing after 4,000 hours (six months), which exceeds the recommended change time even for petroleum hydraulic fluids. The test engineers saw no use in prolonging the test, when the OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) of, for example, the pumps, would invalidate their warrantees had the drain cycle been exceeded to save money, even though testing proved that it could be done. This is a big deal, as common knowledge would say that bio-lubes have a shorter life than do petroleum lubes, given the better oxidation capabilities of the latter product. Beside cost, that was the greatest concern of the technical people surveyed. The above study shows that this is not so big a concern, given the fact that bio-lubes cycle through the machinery so much cooler.
Around that time, companies in Western Europe including Sweden, Germany, Austria, Norway and Switzerland began using bio-lubricants in earnest because, unlike in the U.S., there was not much of a cost differential there between their highly taxed petroleum oil and bio-lubes. Also, people in Western Europe live closer in more dense communities than we do in our ‘wide open spaces’ here in the Americas. In addition, European governments tend to encourage environmental products through labeling and taxing more quickly than we do here in the U.S. (although we have caught on via the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the EPA’s Bio-Preferred Program (www. biopreferred.gov).
Bio-Oil Benefits
Cooler Temperatures
When using bio-oil hydraulic fluid lines and hydraulic fluid hoses break less frequently. Because the heat snags lines together and the machinery operated in runs hot, the seals are attacked which causes the lines to break. With bio-oil, these lines and pumps break less frequently and that the operating temperatures of the machinery run cooler because of its higher lubricity, which means that it is more slippery. In addition, when cycling through the equipment it creates less friction. Bio-oil adheres better, naturally, to steel than does petroleum oil. This means that the oil lubricates the machinery better, further reducing operating temperatures.
Petroleum-Free
Most bio-hydraulic oils are manufactured petroleum free, and are “biodegradable” by definition of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. They are safe for the environment and all living things. What that means is that the bio-oil, when spilled either accidentally or through their normal use, will be rendered inert by the natural action of micro-organisms in the water and the soil. These living “bugs” use the fatty acid lubricant as food and they do so quickly, so that in 21 days about 97 percent of the oil is gone. This compares to persistent petroleum oil that can take years to biodegrade, remaining in the soil as a pollutant. Spilled oil tends to mix with runoff from precipitation to lower lying areas that are environmentally sensitive.
Bio-hydraulic oil has extraordinary adhering qualities as compared to petroleum lubes. As good as it is for mechanical equipment, so it is for decomposing spilled bio-oil, because it adheres better to soil particles as it penetrates the ground. As it remains on or nearer to the surface, there is more oxygen and therefore more micro-organisms to render or decompose the bio oil back into its safer natural elements.
Toxologically Safe
Another argument used initially by early adopters of bio-hydraulic oil is that it is toxicologically safe, as compared to petroleum oil that is a carcinogen (by OSHA’s definition). From an occupational health standpoint, 25 percent of all workers who come into contact daily with any petroleum products suffer from general skin diseases, including discomforting eczema and oil acne. Another good reason to switch is that using benign, bio-based oil also will eliminate unpleasant and irritating petroleum oil odors that ruin clothing. Furthermore, medical records show that petroleum misting from machinery causes irritation of the respiratory tract from prolonged exposure.
Health care professionals know that workers who come in daily contact with petroleum-based lubes continue to be at risk from the many dangerous consequences due to misting. Unlike, say, oil refinery workers, field personnel who use these lubes on a daily basis do not receive onsite health care, nor do they have convenient places to wash and to change clothing.
Carbon Footprint
I mentioned “carbon footprint,” earlier. That is because bio-oil is made from sustainable products grown by our nation’s farmers, which means that users reduce our nation’s dependence on insecure foreign oil. A great bio-hydraulic oil is made from canola, with high tech additives to make up for its poorer oxidation and pour point capabilities. Canola has the most positive lifecycle energy cost to benefit ratio of any vegetable oil, including that of soy.
There also is the matter of “food vs. fuels and lubes” issue that must be mentioned. Unlike biodiesel, which is made from corn and affects the price, Canola, while also a food product, is basically a Canadian product and traditionally has not been grown much in the U.S. As U.S. farmers are always looking for new crops, rowing Canola is a profitable replacement crop.
Considering the Switch
Finally, I started out by mentioning price as a prime determinant of whether or not to switch to bio-oil. Clearly, the first big issue is cost. However, given the higher lubricity and performance issues mentioned above, plus today’s extremely high cost of petroleum, the price is right for America to change to an environmentally friendly, toxicologically safe bio-hydraulic fluid.
Ira N. Pierce is a licensed professional engineer who founded the Green Oil Company (Blue Bell, PA) in 1991. Last year, his company completed a $1,365,000 study of automotive bio- lubricants for the U.S. Department of Energy. He can be reached via e-mail at [email protected] or visit the Web site at www.goco-usa.com.