Study of pentaerythritol tetraoleate ester as industrial gear oil

ABSTRACT Attention has been paid to biodegradable lubricating oils in the field of lubricant application because of environmental pollution control measures. In Europe and in some part of Asia, the use of environmentally acceptable lubricant is supported by environmental labels. Synthetic and vegetable oil‐based esters offer the best choice in formulating environment‐friendly lubricants. Pentaerythritol tetraoleate ester has been synthesised using polyol such as pentaerythritol and oleic acid with indigenous ion exchange resin (Indion‐130) catalyst. The product was characterised for its physicochemical properties and was evaluated for lubrication performance. This was then compared with extreme pressure type of industrial gear oil VG‐68 (IS 8406:1993). The product was found to have good potential for use as a base stock for formulation as extreme pressure type of industrial gear oil VG‐68 (IS 8406:1993). Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.