Bio Based Lubricants: Not Just for Sex Any More
A few years back, while I was still a student at Presidio School of Management, this vivacious, crazy eyed scientist came and told us about the biolubricants that his company WISE Solutions had been working on. My mind of course went to, shall we say, personal lubricants, and I began to tune out. But it turned out to be much different.
You see, they were working on plant based lubricants, to be used (at the time) in vehicles. He shared a story of how they were in some cases too effective at lubrication, causing engines to over perform. Now, years later, I thought I’d take a look at what direction this startup has gone. It seems they gone in many directions, and interesting ones.
But first, what’s to know about these lubricants, and beyond the “not petroleum” factor, what makes them so beneficial, and do they perform in line with their conventional counterparts? In a word, yes. And even better.
How? Well thankfully, WISE speaks both tech and laymanese:
• Better viscosity index and lubricity even at extreme temperatures, which means less friction and longer equipment life, saving energy and money.
• Patented oxidative stability (longer life)
• Health and safety advantages (e.g., less flammable due to higher flash points)
• Lower risk of contaminating products being processed or manufactured (e.g., Food Grade products are rated USDA “H1,” safe for incidental food contact)
• Better cold temperature performance (lower pour points).
The composition of these products hits the right eco bells. These green chemistry based products are made from renewable, non-GMO based oils (as in, not yet another eco product made from monster corn) and specialized additives. They also reach “Ultimate Biodegradability” in 28 days. I’m not a scientist and don’t have figures to compare that to other products, but somehow I don’t imagine a quart of oil going inert in any hurry.
Another advantage to the composition of these products is that they’re not subject to the price volatility of petroleum, and due to WISE’s, well, wise moves, they are less expensive then synthetic counterparts.
Where do these products get used? Well that’s a whole other article, but they see use in food production, whether it’s in agricultural, processed food creation, or keeping the oven working smoothly. They have a range of marine products, which it’s safe to assume aren’t for a hard working branch of the military, but water traveling vessels and other aquatic oriented machinery. But with product names like Bio-Blast Penetrant, I’m not so sure. And they have an industrial line, which among other things has Bio-Power Diesel Fuel Conditioner. This fuel additive is able to improve fuel efficiency by as much as 13.6%, increase horsepower 5.6%, while reducing black smoke emissions by 42% and reducing NOx as well. And that’s only the start. Look for it and have a read yourself.
Topping it all off is the fact that WISE gives back 1% of sales to support sustainable agriculture research, marine preservation, and other worthy causes. If you’re a business that uses machines as well as brains to power the operations, I’d encourage you having a look at WISE Solutions deep catalog of offerings.
A fool and his money will soon part company. Ricks post, about the sperm whale was good.
This may be a dumb question, but how does this differ from Castrol, which historically has come from Castor beans/castor oil?
In regards to TB comments: Castrol is not made from Castor Beans. It is a standard petrolium product. (Yes it has additives, but all high quality oil does.)
Funny, I’m a lubrication specialist for my company, its a Fortune 500 company that offers a larger line of bio-lube with more product info for those who just can’t get it. Guys, do your homework on lube! A Penetrant is a lube that penetrates seized metal to assist in the release of the part. My personal opening line for cold calls, my quote: “Without proper lubrication, not all friction is good”. Tisk Tisk for going to the gutter guys…. The Lube Gal
I want to buy some of this for use in my truck. Where can I get it and how much does it cost?
thanks.
Hey Lubegal, thanks for the enlightenment. You have to admit, this article is probably drawing attention to this subject from people who might not have otherwise become aware of it. It’s great that there are an increasing number of greener products out there, but how they are made, and how people go about their work, is also an area ripe for improvement.
George, go to their site, http://www.wiserenewables.com , and I’m sure it will either point you to where to get their products, or have a contact to find out.
Hey this is the vivacious crazy-eyed scientist that presented at the Presido Green MBA class. Thanks for remembering me and calling me vivacious! I am also crazy-eyed CEO of WISE Solutions.
We are getting more attention now that we have achieved a certified NSF food grade status called H-1 so we can be WISELY used in areas where the lubes might make incidental contact with human food. We also have gained trials in hte City of SF, on NOAA boats, Monterey Bay Aquarium to name a few.
Also to clarify. There are 3 levels of biodegradability as defined by ASTM test 5864. Pw-1 Ultimate, biodegrades >60% in 28 days, Readily, biodegrades >60% in 84 days and inherent which biodegrades >20% with no time limit. Basically inherently polluting. We all are inherently biodegradable!
WISE lubricants meet the Ultimate 28 test sometimes reaching 95%+. What we find is that the petroleum companies are trying to blur the market by saying that they offer “biodegradable lubricants. When we check, in most cases they are only hitting the inherent level but capitalizing on the ignorance of the customer who thinks they are buying a environmenty friendly product.
Maybe the Lube girl is referring to inherent products? Regardless these products can outperform their petroleum competitors, be formulated with American grown oils, give off no harmful VOC’s and still be kind to you, and the earth.
Our Website has changed to wisesolutions.ws and now WISE has non-toxic cleaners, solvents and bioremediation products.
WIshing everyone a happy friction-free biodegradable life.