Natural wax from non-medicinal aerial part of Codonopsis pilosula as a biolubricant

To solve the problems of unsustainability and low biodegradability of mineral oil-based lubricants, an agro-waste to biolubricant supply chain was proposed. A plant wax was extracted from the non-medicinal part of Codonopsis pilosula, and its composition, thermal stability, and lubrication behaviours were investigated. The plant wax was composed mainly of the esters of fatty acids and triterpenes. The natural wax showed good thermal stability and lubricity over the wide temperature range of 25–150 °C and load range of 100–250 N. These intriguing properties indicate that this plant wax can be used as a sustainable biolubricant in an open system or in food processing industry. This work simultaneously provides a strategy to realise the utilisation of the abundant non-medicinal parts of medicinal herbs abandoned in China. The agro-waste to biolubricant supply chain conforms to the goal of cleaner production and technical processes. [Display omitted] •Natural wax from the non-medicinal part of Codonopsis pilosula has good lubricity.•Natural wax displays good load-carrying capacity and thermal stability.•The lubrication mechanism of the wax is boundary lubrication.•This work provides a new sustainable feedstock for green bio-lubricant.•It provides new strategy to eliminate waste in medicinal plant production in China.