ENGINE OIL RECOVERY

A SEMINAR REPORT
Submitted by
ASSIF NISARUDEEN
KKE15CH016

to

The APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University

in partial fulfilment for the requirements for the award of the Degree
of
Bachelor of Technology

In
Chemical engineering

Department Of Chemical Engineering

Government engineering college

Kozhikode

November 2018

i
 DECLARATION
I undersigned hereby declare that the seminar report “ENGINE OIL RECOVERY”,
submitted for partial fulfilment of the requirement for the award of degree of Bachelor of
Technology of the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University , Kerala is bonafide seminar
presentation done by me. The submission represents my ideas in my own words and where
ideas others have been included, I have adequately and accurately cited and referenced the
original sources. I also declare that I have adhered to ethics of academic honesty and
integrity and have not misrepresent or fabricated any data or idea or fact in my submission .
I understand that any violation of the above will be cause for disciplinary action by the
institute and / or the University and can also evoke penal action from the sources which have
thus not been properly cited or from whom proper permission has not been obtained . this
report has not been previously formed the basis for the award of any degree , diploma or
similar title of any other University.

Place Signature

Date Name of the student:

ii
 DEPARTMENT OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

GOVERNMENT ENGINEERING COLLEGE, KOZHIKODE

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the report entitled ENGINE OIL RECOVERY , submitted
by, ASSIF NISARUDEEN to the APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University in partial
fulfilment of the requirements for the award of the Degree of Bachelor of Technology in
chemical engineering is a bonafide record of the seminar presented by him/her. This
report in any form has not been submitted to any other University or Institute for any
purpose.

SEMINAR GUIDE HEAD OF THE DEPT

iii
 ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I hereby express my deep sense of gratitude to my guide Dr.Praseetha P Nair, Department

of Chemical Engineering, for her valuable guidance, constant encouragement and creative
suggestion offered during the course of preparation of the seminar and accompanying report.

I would like to thank Dr.Ushakumary E R, HOD of the Department of chemical

engineering, for allowing me to use the facilities available. I would like to thank all other
faculties at this occasion.

I am grateful to all my friends for providing critical feedback and support whenever required.
Last but not least, I thank my classmates and family members who were always a source of
encouragement and helped me in the successful completion of this seminar

iv
 ABSTRACT
The most important used oil recycling technology is the re-refining. With these processes
high quality base oil can be produced. Re-refining of Egyptian local crankcase used
lubricating oil by solvent extraction/hydro treating was investigated. A comparison of its
product characteristics with virgin base oil and the Egyptian standard regeneration lubricating
oil is introduced. A higher quality of the base oil was obtained using solvent extraction. Also,
the re-refined base oil characteristics using solvent extraction have a slight difference,
compared to the virgin oil and the Egyptian standard. The best results were obtained by a
solvent to oil ratio of 5:1 at 24 hrs settling time. The base oil of total acid number (TAN) 0.2,
pour point -7°C, colour 6, carbon residue 0.33%, ash content 0.093%, viscosity index 110
and flash point 194°C was obtained by solvent extraction. The re-refining using solvent
extraction method gave very high oil yield of 78%.

v
 CONTENTS

NO. TITLE PAGE

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION…………………………………………………………1

1.1 INTRODUCTION TO ENGINE/LUBRICATING OIL.........................1

1.2 COMPOSITION OF ENGINE OIL.....................................................2
1.3 CLASSIFICATION OF ENGINE OIL.................................................3
1.4 USED LUBRICATING OIL...............................................................6
1.5 SOURCES AND COLLECTION OF SPENT OIL...............................7
1.6 HOW ENGINE OIL IS CONTAMINATED.........................................7

CHAPTER 2

2.1 NEED FOR USED OIL RECOVERY...............................................9

2.1.1 EFFECT ON SOIL......................................................…………..9

2.1.2 EFFECT ON WATER BODIES.................……………………….10

2.2 ADDITIVES IN LUBRICATING OIL AND THEIR HAZARDS TO

ENVIRONMENT.....................................................................................................12

2.2.1 ULTIMATE FATE OF LUBE ADDITIVES.......…………….....13

2.2.2 BIO CONCENTRATION OF ADDITIVES............……………..15

CHAPTER 3

3.1 METHODOLOGY.........................................................................17

3.1.1 DEHYDRATION........................................................................17

3.1.2 EXTRACTION...........................................................................17

3.1.3 HYDRO TREATING........................................................…….18

3.2 ANALYSIS................................................................................19

vi
CHAPTER 4

4.1 RESULTS....................................................................................20

4.2 DISCUSSION.........................................................................22

4.2.1 DEHYDRATION STEP.........................................................22

4.2.2 EXTRACTION STEP...........................................................22

4.2.3 HYDRO TREATING..........................................................24

CHAPTER 5

5.1 CONCLUSION……………………………………………………..25

5.2 REFERENCES............................................................................26

vii
 LIST OF FIGURES

NO. TITLE PAGE

1.1 LUBRICANTS AND ITS COMPONENTS……………...................…………..2

1.2 CRANK CASE..............................................................................................3
1.3 FILLING CRANC CASE WITH LUBE...........................................................4
1.4 TRANSMISSION...........................................................................................5
1.5 TORQUE COUPLING.......................................................……………………..6

2.1 POSTER ON OIL DUMPING.......................................................... …………....9

2.2 IMAGE OF OIL CONTAMINATED RIVER...........……………………………….11

2.3 FLOW DIAGRAM ON FATE OF LUBRICANTS………….............................…13

2.4 FATE OF LUBRICANTS...........................................………………………...15

3.1 MAJOR STEPS IN RE-REFINING PROCESS...............................................18

4.1 COMPOSITION OF TREATED OIL BY VARIOUS STEPS OF SOLVENT

EXTRACTION......................................................................................................21

4.2 YIELD AND ASH CONTENT AT DIFFERENT SOLVENT TO OIL RATIO.....23

viii
 LIST OF TABLES

NO. TITLE PAGE

2.1EFFECT OF WASTE OIL ON PHYSICAL PROPERTIES OF SOIL.................10

2.2 EFFECT OF WASTE OIL ON CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF SOIL...............10

4.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF USED OIL AND RE-REFINED OIL.........................20

4.2 METAL CONTENTS IN PPM FOR DIFFERENT STEPS OF SOLVENT

EXTRACTION....................................................................................................21

4.3 YIELD AND ASH CONTENT AT DIFFERENT SETTLING TIME.................22

ix
x
 CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION

1.1. INTRODUCTION TO ENGINE/LUBRICATING OIL

An engine oil can be defined as an oil product that divide the metal parts of an engine, reduce
friction and keep it fresh. Lubricant deals with the purpose of lubricating oil to machine.
Lubricants were at one time exclusively animal or vegetable oils of fats, but modern
prerequisite in both nature and volume have petroleum as the main source of supply,
lubricating oil can be produced by modern process of refining from most crude and they
range from thin easily flowing spindle oils to container cylinder oils.

The lubrication system of an engine is intended to avoid the increase of wear, overheating
and seizure of rubbing surfaces to reduce the expenses of indicated power on overcoming
mechanical losses in the engine and also to remove wear products of a machine. There are
four major types of lubricant, namely – liquid, solid, gaseous and plastic Lubricant, example
of lubricants include oil, grease, air and graphite. Liquid and plastic lubricants are the most
commonly used lubricant in industries because they are inexpensive, simply applied and
high-quality coolants while Gaseous and Solid lubricant are recommended only in some
special application.

In view of the problem encountered, lubricating oil is designed to impact varieties of

properties and to guard engine in so many ways. Lubricating oil is highly specialized product
carefully developed to perform many necessary functions among which are the following.
Permit easy starting of engine, reduced friction, protecting machine against tarnish and
corrosion, lubricating of engine parts etc.

1
1.2 COMPOSITION OF ENGINE OIL

The most important consideration in engine oil is the reduction of friction and control of
wears where viscosity is the primary factor performance which was obtained by blending
base stock or base oil with various compositions of various additives. So achieving the
right viscosity relies on selecting the right base stocks and blending recycled oil with
performance additives to enhance functional performance. The advanced refinery
technologies specifically the lube processing, is a sophisticated refining technique e.g.
Hydro treating/hydro cracking is introduced to convert the undesirable components of the
base stocks. United State Environmental Protection Agency noticed that, the base stocks
used in the formulation of this engine oil are either of crude petroleum or synthetic origin.
Crude petroleum base oils are obtained by refining crude. While synthetic on the other
hand is those products made from petroleum or vegetable feed stock and are often “tailor
made” for specific application.

Figure 1.1-Lubricants and its components

2
1.3 CLASSIFICATION OF ENGINE OIL

Engine oil is normally specified in terms of their performance and viscosity grade. Three
types of automotive lubricants have been defined and classified by the Society of Automotive
Engineers (SAE) of USA:

i. Crankcase oil.

A crankcase is the housing for the crankshaft in a reciprocating internal combustion engine.
The enclosure forms the largest cavity in the engine and is located below the cylinder, which
in a multi-cylinder engine is usually integrated into one or several cylinder blocks.
Crankcases have often been discrete parts, but more often they are integral with the cylinder
bank(s), forming an engine block. Nevertheless, the area around the crankshaft is still usually
called the crankcase. Crankcases and other basic engine structural components (e.g.,
cylinders, cylinder blocks, cylinder heads, and integrated combinations thereof) are typically
made of cast iron or cast aluminium via sand casting.

The working of the engine produces large amount of heat due to friction between metals
parts, so reduce to friction and to keep the engine clean crank case oil is used.

Figure 1.2-Crank case

3
 Figure 1.3-Filling crank case with lube

ii. Transmission and axle lubricant.

Transmission fluid is used to lubricate the components of a car’s transmission for optimum
performance. In vehicles with automatic transmissions, this fluid also acts as a coolant. There
are several types of auto transmission fluids, and the type used in individual cars and trucks
depends on the type of transmission inside. Automatic transmissions use regular automatic
transmission fluid, as the name suggests. Manual transmission fluid can vary, however, using
either plain motor oil, a transmission oil known as heavyweight hypoid gear oil, or automatic
transmission fluid.

While the primary function of auto transmission fluid is to lubricate the various parts of the
transmission, it can serve other functions as well:

 Clean and protect metal surfaces from wear

 Condition gaskets
 Enhance cooling function and reduce high operating temperatures
 Increase rotational speed and temperature range

4
 Figure 1.4-transmission

iii. Fluids for hydraulic torque convertors

Torque fluids are viscous liquids. The viscosity of a fluid is its thickness. This viscosity, or
thickness, creates a resistance, or friction, with anything flowing through the liquid.
The greater thelevelof viscosity within torque fluid, the more friction will be caused when
pressure is exerted, and the more effective the torque converter will become.

Torque fluid is powerful in the small spaces of torque converters. Torque fluid fills the inside
of a torque converter, and helps create friction when the torque converter is activated, which
allows the discs to tighten up and turn together. This turning of the torque converter takes
power out of the transmission and allows your vehicle or machine to idle without lurching
forward from too much active power.

A good torque fluid needs to have a low viscosity, because like water, it fills a small space. If
it were to be too viscous, it would clog the parts of the torque converter, and cause some
pretty major issues.

5
 Figure 1.5-Torque coupling

1.4 USED LUBRICATING OIL

Used lubricating oil often referred to as waste oil without further qualification is any
lubricating oil, whether refined from crude or synthetic components, which has been
contaminated by physical or chemical impurities as a result of use . Lubricating oil loses its
effectiveness during process due to the presence of certain types of contaminants.

These contaminants can be divided into:

(1) Extraneous contaminants

(2) Products of oil deterioration.

6
1.5 SOURCE AND COLLECTION OF SPENT ENGINE OIL

Classes of waste Characteristics Probable source point

Aqueous waste Waste water containing oil Refineries and petrochemical
and more highly Facilities, oil storage,
contaminated waste installation, vehicles or car
wash park
Spent motor oil Contains contaminants which Garages, commercial
are volatile (fuel) soluble (oil transport undertakings,
additives) and insoluble service stations, industrial
(carbon pieces),metal oxides sites
including lead oxide together
with a large number of other
trace metal, and detergent
Spent oil emulsion Mainly water soluble cutting Metal working industries,
oil, wastes containing machine shops,
dispersed mineral oils in manufacturing industrial
water, soap type emulsifiers engineering activities
lube oil additives and other
contaminants like tramp oil
Non-emulsified oil mixtures Mainly mineral oil waste Metal working industries,
containing 10%-90% water, energy sectors,
oil, oxidized lubricants, manufacturing industries
waste metal particles and
tramp oils

1.6 HOW ENGINE OIL IS CONTMINATED

Motor oil deteriorates and becomes unfit for service due to accumulation of contaminants in
the oil and chemical changes (additive depletion and oxidation) in the oil itself.

7
1. Abrasives

 Dust and Dirt

The design limitations of air cleaners, leaks in the intake system can permit unfiltered
air to enter the engine.
 Metal Particles
Normal wear of engine parts produces very small metal particles that are picked up
and circulated by the oil. Particles of road dust and dirt increase wear.

2. Combustion By-Products

 Water
During cold engine usage water produced during combustion remains in liquid state
and the water enters he crankcase and causes corrosion and sludge.
 Acids
The combustion process produces acidic gases which, like water vapour, condense on
cylinder walls at cold engine temperatures and find their way into the crankcase oil.
The gases combine with water to cause corrosion.
 Soot and Carbon
Incomplete combustion produces soot, carbon and other deposit-forming materials.
 Dilution
Caused when unburned fuel escapes to crankcase and mixes with the motor oil. It
reduces the oil efficiency and its viscosity.

3. Coolant

 Coolant can find its way into lubrications systems through a blown head gasket,
leaking intake gaskets or cracked cylinder heads.Coolant contamination can severely
damage engine bearings, pistons, rings and liners. It reduces oil viscosity and can
thicken it to a “sludge” allowing the formation of acids that will attack engine
component metals.

8
 CHAPTER 2

2.1 NEED FOR USED OIL RECOVERY

2.1.1 EFFECT ON SOIL

Waste lubricating oil having been contaminated with impurities in the course of usage
and handling; contain toxic and harmful substances such as benzene, lead, cadmium,
polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), zinc, arsenic, polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs) etc. which are hazardous and detrimental to the soil and the surrounding
environment. The environment must be protected against pollution by lubricants and
hydraulic fluids based on mineral oils. This is, of course, best done by preventing
undesirable losses and by reclaiming and reusing lubricants. Alternatively,
environmentally acceptable lubricants and hydraulic fluids should be used whenever and
wherever possible. Increase in demand for cars, heavy duty automobiles, generators etc.
throughout the year, led to increase in demand for lubricating oils, and this resulted in the
generation of large oil irrespective of the type and source of collection, is sometimes
dumped into the soil causing harmful or toxic materials to percolate through the soil thus
contaminating the soil and thereby changing the physical and chemical properties. It is
also sometimes dumped down drain, sewers, disrupting the operations at waste water
treatment plants (Udonne and Onwuma 2014).

Figure 2.1-Poster on oil dumping

9
 Table 2.1

Table 2.2

2.1.2 EFFECT ON WATER BODIES

Damage to Fisheries, Wildlife, and Recreation

Oil spills present the potential for enormous harm to deep Ocean and coastal fishing and
fisheries. The immediate effects of toxic and smothering oil waste may be mass mortality and
contamination of fish and other food species, but long-term ecological effects may be worse.
Oil waste poisons the sensitive marine and coastal organic substrate, interrupting the food
chain on which fish and sea creatures depend, and on which their reproductive success is
based. Commercial fishing enterprises may be affected permanently.

10
Wildlife other than fish and sea creatures, including mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds
that live in or near the ocean, are also poisoned by oil waste. The hazards for wildlife include
toxic effects of exposure or ingestion, injuries such as smothering and deterioration of
thermal insulation, and damage to their reproductive systems and behaviours. Long-term
ecological effects that contaminate or destroy the marine organic substrate and thereby
interrupt the food chain are also harmful to the wildlife, so species populations may change or
disappear.

Coastal areas are usually thickly populated and attract many recreational activities and related
facilities that have been developed for fishing, boating, snorkelling and scuba diving,
swimming, nature parks and preserves, beaches, and other resident and tourist attractions. Oil
waste that invades and pollutes these areas and negatively affects human activities can have
devastating and long-term effects on the local economy and society. Property values for
housing tend to decrease, regional business activity declines, and future investment is risky.

Fig 2.2 Image of oil contaminated river

11
 2.2 ADDITIVE IN LUBRICANTS AND THEIR HAZARD TO
ENVIRONMENT

Finished lubricants contain a number of individual additive components typically about eight
but ranging from five to fifteen. Some or all may be blendedindividually into the lubricant
base stock during manufacture. More typically,the components are pre-blended by the
additive manufacturer into a performanceadditive package which is sold to the lubricant
marketer. The viscosity modifier,which is a major component of multi-grade crankcase
lubricants, is usuallypurchased and blended separately by the lubricant marketer

The majority of lubricant additives are of low mammalian toxicity and aretypically less
harmful when ingested than familiar household products. Somelubricant additives are
suspected of being harmful to aquatic organisms andmost show a degree of persistence but
these additives are typically of lowwater solubility and when handled and disposed of
according to manufacturers’recommendations are considered not to present a significant
environmental risk.

The composition of the crankcase lubricant changes during use. Some additivesare
chemically changed or even destroyed as part of their functionality, andany contaminants of
combustion generated during the course of engine operationwhich are not swept into the
exhaust stream are neutralized and dispersed withinthe lubricant. It is widely accepted that
used oil drained from the engine sump willcontain poly aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)
generated by the combustion process and this waste is suspected to pose a carcinogen risk
through accidental skin contact.

Users are normally advised against inappropriate contact or disposal of usedlubricants to

minimize the environmental and human risks from used oil.Lubricant additives can be
released into the environment during manufacture,transport, and usage, and therefore it is
necessary to evaluate these materialsfor their potential in causing adverse environmental
effects. We use a standardapproach to environmental hazard characterization that evaluates
lubricant additives

12
based on the following three criteria of environmental effects:

• The material’s toxicity to sensitive environmental organisms,

• The material’s relative persistence in the environment measured by its degradation

rate,

• The material’s potential to accumulate in the food chain.

Figure 2.3

2.2.1 ULTIMATE FATE OF LUBRICANT ADDITIVES

All lubricants, as identified in the previous section are here followed through totheir ultimate
fate in the air, water or soil compartments. Other industry partnershave placed increasing
emphasis on the reuse and safe disposal of used oil. OEMshave given much emphasis over
the last five years to the recycling of used engineoil. The re-refining of used oils has also
increased.

13
The environmental pathways for lubricants used in the passenger car and truck sectorsare the
same. Thus crankcase lubricant additives also follow these same generalpathways, to their
ultimate fate in the air, water or soil compartments. Crankcaselubricants enter the engine
when either the sump is filled or when the engine istopped up. They leave the engine:

• when drained, as used oil or

• as leakage through seals or gaskets during use or

• via lubricant consumption down the tailpipe as gaseous emissions (combustion

products or particulates).

If the vehicle is fitted with a particulate trap, the incombustible portion of the
lubricant in the exhaust will be trapped by this filter

The lubricant leaves the engine down the tailpipe as emissions of either combustionproducts
(gases or vapour) or particulates (which will be collected if a particulatetrap is fitted). A
portion of the lubricant (and fuel) combustion products isentrained and re-dispersed in the
crankcase lubricant itself, or forms deposits inthe engine. Leakage past seals or gaskets is
estimated to be negligible for bothcars and trucks. The environmental routes of this portion of
the lubricant are to thewater and soil compartments.

14
 Figure 2.4

2.2.2 BIO CONCENTRATION OF ADDITIVES

Materials that accumulate in the food chain to the extent they can causeadverse
environmental and human health effects are cause for concern. Theextent to which materials
accumulate in organisms is expressed as the bioconcentrationfactor (BCF). In aquatic
environments, BCF is defined as theratio of the concentration of the material in the aquatic
organism at equilibrium
to the concentration of the material in the water. Generally, the less watersoluble a material
is, the greater its accumulation in the lipid tissues of aquaticorganisms.

However, these tests were developed for materials consisting of single definedchemicals, not
for materials like lubricant additives which are actually mixtureswith a range of log Kow.
Thus it is technically difficult to measure analyticallyall of the components of lubricant
additives in fish bio-concentration testsand generally we rely on marker compounds in the
lubricant-additive matrix.

15
The testing of lubricant additives is further complicated by the fact that manycomponents of
lubricant additives are quite similar to naturally produced materials within the fish, thus
interpretation of tissue residue results can be extremelydifficult.

16
 CHAPTER 3

3.1 METHODOLOGY

SOLVENT EXTRACTION FOLLOWED BY HYDROTREATING

Steps involved are

 Dehydration
 Extraction
 Hydrotreating

3.1.1 DEHYDRATION

Water and light contaminants were first removed from the used oil. Thus, the used oil was
distilled up to 200⁰C and furthered fractionated under vacuum (5 mmHg) to eliminate the
light hydrocarbons. The residual fraction over 350⁰C was obtained.

3.1.2 EXTRACTION

Extraction: This study used methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) as solvent for treatment instead of
butyl alcohol and isopropyl alcohol. This choice was due to the difficulties in recovery of this
solvent again that results in great lose in solvent which leads to high cost, in addition, the ease of
recovery, low boiling point and low cost of the MEK. The solvent was of analytical grade and supplied by E.
Merck. The dehydrated oil of initial boiling point of 320⁰C was subjected to solvent
extraction at 25⁰C and atmospheric pressure. A mixer settler apparatus was used for extraction
and temperature was controlled with the help of thermostatic bath. Dehydrated oil and solvent were
stirred for one hour to ensure adequate mixing, and then subjected to sufficient settling. The
oil/solvent mixture was separated and was freed from any suspended particles by centrifugation. The solvent
was recovered by distillation, as the MEK boiling point is 80⁰C, to reuse it again. To
determine optimum conditions solvent to oil ratio and settling time varied.

17
3.1.3 HYDROTREATING

Hydrotreating of extracted oil took place by feeding the sample into a trickle bed reactor which
serves for laboratory study of heterogeneous catalytic processes under pressure occurring in
liquid or gaseous phase. The reactor contains catalyst bed of Ni/Mo that supported by silica
alumina base. Commercial grade Ni-Mo catalyst was provided from Albemarle Catalysts
Company (KF 841). The process take place at the following operating conditions, temperature:
350⁰C, pressure: 50 Kg/cm2, LHSV: 0.7 and hydrogen to oil ratio: 300 L/L.

Hydrogen gas stream is supplied to the unit from a hydrogen cylinder having a maximum pressure of 120
Kg/cm2. The unit was first flushed with nitrogen to remove air, and then kept for 4 hrs under a
hydrogen gas pressure of 100 Kg/cm2 to check any leakage. The catalyst bed was reduced and
sulfided. The liquid feed and the hydrogen gas streams are injected under pressure at the top of
the reactor, both cross the different zones of the reactor in down-flow direction.

Figure 3.1

18
3.2 ANALYSIS

American Society for Testing andMaterials (ASTM) standard methods were used to
determine various properties of the used lube oil. Total Acid Number (TAN), specific gravity
at 40⁰C, water content, colour, flash point, carbon residue, viscosity index, pour point, ash content,
viscosities at 40 and 100⁰C were determined according to ASTM D974, D1298, D95, D1500, D92,
D189, D2270, D97, D874 and D445 respectively. Metal contents were determined using the
atomic absorption spectrometer. The hydrocarbon composition was analysed by distillation
gas chromatograph.

19
 CHAPTER 4
4.1 RESULTS

Used oil is a complex mixture of recoverable base oil, additives, water, light hydrocarbons,metals and
carbonaceous particles. A good extraction solvent should dissolve base oil andprecipitate other
substances to form sludge. This process combines extraction with solventand hydro treating
by removing the foreign substances by solvent and then improving oilquality by hydro
treating. First, the water and light ends are removed and the used oil isseparated through MEK
extraction. Then the extracted oil is subjected to hydro treating forpurification purposes. The
treated oil was analysed after each step for TAN, ash content,pour point and other
characteristics. Table 4.1 shows the characteristics of the used andtreated oil by the various re-
refining processes. The metal contents and the hydrocarboncompositions of the treated oil by the
various solvent extraction steps are reported in Table4.2 and Figure 4.1, respectively.

Table 4.1

20
Table 4.2

Figure 4.1

21
 Table 4.3

4.2 DISCUSSIONS

4.2.1. DEHYDRATION STEP

Water found in lubricating oil in service depends on where the automobile is being used. In
normal operating conditions traces of water in the lubricant are unavoidable, arising from
such sources as leaking oil coolers, engine cooling system leaks and in all types of machinery, from
atmospheric condensation. The presence of excessive water contamination will affect the
viscosity of the oil and this may give rise to emulsion formation and can also lead to gear tooth and bearing
problems. Therefore, the first step of the re-refining of the used oil was dehydration by
atmospheric distillation while light hydrocarbons are separated in vacuum distillation. After
dehydration process water and light hydrocarbon decrease, however, water decreased from 2
to 0.08 wt%.

4.2.2 EXTRACTION STEP

The extraction of dehydrated oil by MEK at different solvent to oil ratio was studied. The
results of the yield and ash content from the extraction are shown in Figure 4.2. It is found that
the removal of ash content increases with increasing of solvent to oil ratio from 3:1 to 5:1,
respectively. The yield and removal of ash content remain independent of solvent to oil ratio
greater than 5:1. The capability of a solvent to separate contaminants from used oil is closely
related to its solubility parameters. Solvent to oil ratio lower than 5:1 leads to reduce the
solvency power and also not to improve the properties of the recycled oil. This means that larger solvent to
oil ratio will lead to dissolution of some contaminants especially the ash

22
forming material, which was considered to be undesirable. As a result of above mentioned facts, the ratio of 5:1
was considered to be the better solvent to oil ratio used for the treatment of used oil. However, critical clarifying
ratio for MEK has been reported as 2:6:1 at 350C with minimum oil remaining in sludge. Perhaps the difference
is due to free sedimentation instead of centrifugation and also due to the increase in temperature of extraction.
.
The effect of the settling time was studied. Table 4.3 reports the extraction by MEK at different settling
time with the solvent to oil ratio 5:1. The removal of ash content was slightly increased by increasing
settling time from 24 to 48 hrs. However, the increase in settling time has negligible effect on
the yield percent.

The results of the extraction of dehydrated oil with solvent to oil ratio 5:1 for settling time 24
hrs are shown in Table 1. The unsaturated, aromatic and heteroatom containing molecules are reduced
(Figure 4.1). The percentage of saturates increase from 56% to 71% due to reduction in the residues percentage so that
pour point increased from -15 to -10. In addition, viscosity index, ach content reduced to 109 and 0.236,
respectively. Specific gravity of the dehydrated and extracted oil was found to be almost insensitive,
as shown in Table 4.1.

Figure 4.2

23
4.2.3 HYDROTREATING

By the knowledge hydrotreating process improves lubricating oils colour and colour stability
and also reduces the level of halogen, sulphur, oxygen, nitrogen and metals compounds. Reduction in metallic content is
due to effect of de-metallization bed (alumina). Also, a lot of the aromatics and other unsaturates (which
were not eliminated by previous steps) are saturated to an acceptable low level. Saturates are
increased to about 84% (Figure 4.1). In all steps before hydrotreating, the removal of color was
negligible. The hydrotreated oil clearly appeared under a suitable treatment for the removal of
colour. Colour was improved from 8 to approximately 6 (Table 4.1).

In addition, used oil was found to have a TAN of 2.9 mg KOH/gm while the dehydration and extracted oil
steps reduced this value to 0.942 and 0.303 mg KOH/gm, respectively. However, the
hydrotreated oil had a TAN value of 0.203 mg KOH/gm.

The decrease in value of flash point for the used oil could be as a result of the presence of light
ends of oils. In essence, after undergoing combustion and oxidation at high temperature of the
combustion engine, the oil breaks down into component parts, which include some light ends . The
flash point of the re-refined oil was facilitated by the removal of the light ends. The flash points are
128°C, 212°C, 218°C and 194°C for used oil, dehydrated oil, extracted oil, and hydrotreated
oil, respectively.

24
 CHAPTER 5

5.1CONCLUSION

This study was carried out on Egyptian local crankcase used lubricating oil collected by
Alexandria Petroleum Company (El MAX) from different places and governorates in Egypt.
The re-refining processes was studied, ie solvent extraction/hydro treating .

The results were compared with virgin base oil and the Egyptian standard regeneration
lubricating oil. From the results presented, it is clear that the process effectively re-refined the
used lubricating oil with 78 % .

The most excellent quality of the base oil re-refinery by solvent extraction was obtained
using solvent to oil ratio 5:1 with settling time 24 hrs, while, the oil compositions were
consisting of 84% of saturates, 14% of aromatics and 2% of residue. Also, it can be carried out at ambient
temperature with cheap and low boiling point solvent MEK.

There is slight difference in quality between the re-refine base oil using solvent extraction and the
base virgin and the Egyptian standard oils. With the addition of specific chemical additives,
the properties of the re-refine oil are enhanced.

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5.2 REFERENCES

[1] Durrani, H.A., Panhwar, M.I., Kazi, R.A.(2011),Re-refining of waste lubricating oil by
solvent extraction. Mehran University Research Journal of Eng. & Tech.,
30(2):237-246.

[2] Kamal, A., Khan, F(2009).: Effect of extraction and adsorption on re-refining of used
lubricating oil., Oil & Gas Science and Technology, 64(2):191-197.

[3] Manasomboonphan, W., Junyapoon, S(2012).: Production of liquid fuels from waste
lube oils used by pyrolysis process. 2nd International Conference on Biomedical Engineering
and Technology, IPCBEE vol. 34 ©, IACSIT Press, Singapore.

[4] Baladincz, J., Szabo, L., Nagy, G., Hancsok, J(2008): Possibilities for processing for
used lubricating oils – Part 1. MOL Scientific Magazine, 3:81-86.

[5] Bridjanian, H., Sattarin, M.(2013): Modern recovery methods in used oil re-refining.
Petroleum & Coal, 2006, 48(1):40-43. E. A. Emam, A. M. Shoaib/Petroleum & Coal 55(3)
179-187, 186.

[6] Hani, F.B., Al-Wedyan, H.(2011): Regeneration of base-oil from waste-oil under
different conditions and variables. African Journal of Biotechnology, 10(7):1150-1153.

[7] EOS. Egyptian organization for standardization & quality, “Regeneration lubricating
oils”, No. 1082, ICS: 75, 2005, http://www.eos.org.eg/public/ar-eg/.

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