African Petrochemicals Edition 16.3

IPP & Renewables
THREE MYTHS OF LUBRICATION THAT NEED BUSTING
As specialists in lubrication reliability
solutions, the team at Lubrication
Engineers (LE) South Africa frequently
comes up against myths relating to
lubricants. “People believe things
or are taught things about oils and
greases that are not necessarily
true, and by implementing this bad
advice or outdated practices, they
risk compromising their equipment,”
says Callum Ford, National Marketing
Manager at LE South Africa. “We try
to educate the market about best
practice to help raise the bar and fight
misinformation.”
These are the three most common myths the
company comes up against:
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1. The colour of a lubricant affects its
efficacy
“We often have people phoning us up and
saying things like, ‘I want the red lubricant
because it’s the best.’ In truth, the colour of a
lubricant is normally something that is added
as a marketing tactic or to differentiate it
from other products – it has no bearing
on the effectiveness of the lubricant itself,”
says Ford. “The most important aspect of
lubrication choice is selecting a product that
is best suited for your particular application.”
Ford explains that LE South Africa uses colour
in its products to differentiate between
product types. Edible lubricants are white;
lithium-based lubricants are yellow; opengear
lubricants are purple and lubricants for
cars and trucks (especially oils) are red. Some
companies, on the other hand, will colour
lubricants to match their brand colours.
2. Grease it until it leaks
Ford says that this line of thinking holds that
greasing machinery with more lubricant
means you will have to re-apply the product
less often. However, overlubricating can
create problems instead of resolving them.
“Overgreasing equipment will mean the
lubricant begins to work against itself,
causing internal friction,” he explains. “This
can lead to temperatures rising in the
machine, seals collapsing, and even eventual
equipment failure. For optimal performance,
you need the right lubricant applied at the
right frequency and in the right dosage.
This is why lubrication schedules are
important, and why many companies are
moving to single-point lubrication systems,
which automatically dispense lubrication
into machinery in optimal quantities at set
intervals.”
3. A grease is a grease
Not all greases are created equal. Some are
the consistency of honey; others of peanut
butter; still others of toffee. Naturally, these
greases will behave differently.
“When it comes to grease viscosity, there’s
a scale created by the National Grease
Lubricating Institute (NLGI) ranging from
000 to 6, representing very low to very high
viscosity greases,” says Ford. “Equipment
manufacturers will specify the NLGI grade
required on the equipment. If it specifies
NLGI 002 and you’re using NLGI 3, you’re
going to run into problems, because the
grease penetration is different.”
Furthermore, even greases with the same
NLGI rating will behave differently depending
on the base and additives with which they
are made. “For example, I use a test machine
we call a ‘rat trap’ to show clients how two
lubricants with the same NLGI grade react
to the same force or pressure over time.
The one lubricant disperses from the joint
where it’s been applied much quicker than
the other, loses its tackiness and heats up far
more quickly. This is why we take the time
to understand what the specific lubrication
application is, and what a customer needs
before we recommend a product. Each of
our unique, proprietary additives has been
designed to yield specific benefits.”
About Lubrication Engineers
Lubrication Engineers (LE) South Africa
represents the LE brand in South Africa,
Botswana, Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe
and Zambia. LE hold the rights to Southern
Africa on the LE brand, recognised
internationally as a specialist in lubrication.
Through LE Incorporated, they are a member
of a worldwide network of companies
spanning Europe, South America, Asia and
Africa, while LE Incorporated operates in the
USA and covers North America including
Canada, Mexico and the USA.
LE provides high performance, heavy-duty,
quality lubricants for virtually every industry
and application, as well as expert technical
back-up and support.
For more information:
www.lubricationengineers.co.za
Contact:
Callum Ford
National Marketing Manager, LE
Tel: 011 464 1735
Email: callum@lubricationengineers.co.za