Vessel operators carry a range of lubricants and greases, from cylinder oils for two-stroke engines to hydraulic or circulating oils, gear oils, compressor oils, refrigeration oil and greases. Out of all these marine lubes, the IMO 2020 regulation is only likely to affect engine oils, says Star, in particular lubricants for two- and four-stroke uses. Oils for these applications will vary depending upon the customer’s route to compliance – scrubbers or compliant fuel – and engine design. Engine manufacturers set most of the specifications for their equipment.
“We have a good idea of what the fuel blends are likely to be,” says Thurloway. “There’s still going to be high sulphur product that will be used in scrubber- equipped vessels, as well as blended with low sulphur products while maintaining the 0.5% level. There’s going to be a lot of permutations of what that blend could contain... The larger issue may be… whether the right products are available in the right places.”
The BN of a lubricant must be paired with the sulphur of a fuel and the operating conditions. Switching between fuels can create a mismatch, with consequences for performance.
While 70 or 100 BN is a common pairing with bunker fuels used today, 25-40BN is expected to dominate for lower sulphur fuels.
Star expects the cylinder oil landscape to “change quite substantially during 2019” as suppliers amend their market offer to meet changing demands. Lubricant producers and additive companies are developing new products; picking a few examples from rival suppliers, there is clearly a mantra of “be prepared”.
Additive makers such as Oronite, Infineum or Lubrizol are likely to revise their formulations.
Wolpert says: “We don’t know which way it will go. We’re preparing lubricant solutions for the whole range of potential fuels. If a shipowner has a scrubber [on a vessel with a two-stroke engine] and wants to use 3.5% sulphur fuel, they can use a 70BN or 100BN [machine lubricant] for which we already offer additives today. If they buy 0.5% sulphur fuel, we have products we’re developing in the 25-40BN range, with lower acid neutralisation but improved detergency.”
Oronite offers around five or six additives on the general market under the OLOA brand, or Oronite Lube Oil Additive. It is developing products for future fuels, though has not released names of new products.
Star says of ExxonMobil’s marine lubes business: “We are working closely with OEMs and assessing multiple lubricant formulations in our test engine... We have also recently revamped and substantially upgraded our scrapedown analysis service to provide operators with additional insight into their two-stroke engine operations. We are also looking at our supply chain, product and location offer.”
ExxonMobil plans to “simplify” its offering, so its cylinder oil for compliant fuels can be used “continuously within ECAs, minimising complexity and storage considerations for operators”, says Star. Changes may be “less substantial” for medium-speed engines, with only a slight amendment in BN levels. “If vessel operators choose LNG [liquefied natural gas] as their compliant fuel option, then a bespoke engine oil will be required.”
Chevron Marine Lubricants announced a new range of cylinder lubricants, with five products from 25BN to 140BN, in September 2018 under the TARO ULTRA brand. They will have approval by early 2019 for the main two-stroke OEMs, says Thurloway. “We’ve got a new line of products that will be introduced throughout 2019 ready for 2020… we’re very ready.” Major two-stroke OEMs include big names like Wartsila and MAN.
A Shell spokesperson said it has designed lubricants for low sulphur fuels, for two-stroke, crosshead diesel engines and for four-stroke trunk piston engines. Flexibility is a key trend in uncertain times. With shipowners like Hapag-Lloyd trialling different technologies, new lubricants are emerging. This is a sea change for fuels in shipping which could have some immediate, some long-lasting, consequences for selected lubricant uses. The short-term horizon is dotted with new lubricants, news of new approvals and new fuels.
LINK
www.icis.com
LUBE MAGAZINE NO.147 OCTOBER 2018
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