ANALYSIS
The key market drivers of bio-lubricants
Sharbel Luzuriaga, Project Manager, Energy & Industrials Practice, Kline & Company Max Marioni, Analyst, Energy & Industrials Practice, Kline & Company
Regulations, innovative biotechnological solutions and growing market acceptance will drive the global bio-lubricants market
Bio-lubricants have long suffered from a poor image, with shortcomings in performance and higher prices among the factors limiting them to a few niche applications in forestry and agriculture, to be used only when required by law. However, today, the increased supply of new generation, high-performing, and cost-competitive lubricants based on synthetic bio-based feedstocks is helping to reconcile sustainability, cost, and performance. As a quickly evolving market, the bio-lubricants sector has been identified as one of the fields with the highest growth potential within the wider market for finished lubricants.
The reasons are manifold. The rebirth of bio-lubricants is taking place mainly in the United States and Europe, driven by a mix of regulatory schemes and industry standards. To be labelled as a bio-lubricant, a finished lubricant product needs to conform with strict criteria on bio-degradability, renewability, and low toxicity.
Kline’s Definition of Bio-lubricants Biodegradability: lubricants that biodegrade to their natural state from 60% onwards in 28 days – “readily biodegradable”
Toxicity: lubricants that are non-toxic to the environment, which can be measured by OECD 201-203 tests for acute toxicity, OECD 210-211 for chronic toxicity or equivalent ASTM D-6064
Renewability: lubricants with bio-based carbon in excess >25% (in line with CEN 16227), as measured by ASTM D-6866
One of the most influential pieces of legislation in the area has been the Vessel General Permit (VGP), which mandates the use of bio-degradable substances for marine vessels operating in North American waters. Despite its origin as a U.S. regulation, its impact has been felt across the world, given the global nature of maritime trade and the clout of the U.S. shipping industry. In Europe, the EU Ecolabel can be applied to bio-lubricants fulfilling the required criteria: this scheme aggregates various labelling schemes of individual European countries, such as the Blaue Engel in Germany, the VAMIL Regulation in the Netherlands, and Sweden’s Swedish Standard.
However, research conducted by Kline reveals there is more to bio-lubricant demand than mere observance of the rules: in fact, the market for bio-lubricants is evolving at a breath-taking pace. In the past, when the market was almost exclusively regulatory- driven, bio-lubricants were prevalently used for total loss lubrication systems. Products labelled as bio-degradable were shunned by end users due to their much higher average price and sub-standard performance. The emergence of oleochemical derivates, notably synthetic esters, contributed to improving performance issues. Bio-lubricant development, now aimed at accidental loss lubrication applications, became application-driven and more focused on performance.
End-use industries, for their part, became more receptive to the appeal of bio-lubricants, partially in response to regulatory requirements, but also because they were attracted by this new wave of high-quality bio-lubricants with superior performance, Continued on page 22
20 LUBE MAGAZINE NO.143 FEBRUARY 2018
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76
