the impact category, either the fatty acid or the alcohol supply account for the biggest share while the influence of the esterification process is lower in most cases.
The comparative analysis shows the calculated results for both products per impact category.
Table 1: Results of the comparative analysis
LIGALUB 19 TMP has lower environmental impacts in the categories climate change, use of fossil resources and photochemical ozone formation. For acidification, ionising radiation as well as ozone depletion and resource use of minerals and metals, the results for DITA were lower. A higher difference advantaging DITA was found for freshwater, marine and terrestrial eutrophication, land use and water use. Those results can be considered typical for renewable feedstocks based on agricultural biomass as many different impacts like the use of fertiliser and the use of diesel for agricultural machinery are included in the assessment of those feedstocks.
In total, the production process of LIGALUB 19 TMP releases less GHG emissions (- 15.8 %) than the fossil- based DITA production process. Taking the biogenic carbon uptake into consideration, a carbon footprint of 3.79 kg CO2
eq/kg is achieved for LIGALUB 19 TMP which leads to overall 45.7 % GHG savings.
A comprehensive sensitivity analysis has been carried out to determine how value and methodological parameters affect the results. Different alternative scenarios were considered and two key findings can be highlighted:
The LIGALUB 19 TMP values for eutrophication of freshwater are very high compared to DITA. The value can mostly be attributed to the wastewater treatment in the palm kernel oil refinery. The results highly depend on the chosen dataset and improvements can be observed if a dataset based on other refinery practices is used. For the baseline scenario, the most conservative option has been chosen.
Figure 2: Climate change results for LIGALUB vs. DITA
Besides the choice of a refinery dataset, selecting a raw material from specific more environmentally friendly agricultural practices can lead to significant improvement of the carbon footprint. Using RSPO certified palm oil enables carbon footprint savings of up to 61 % in comparison to DITA. The savings are mainly related to the emission reduction potential from land use change.
Conclusion and outlook The study compared two products from different value chains. Therefore, the nature and manufacturing pathways of the used raw materials were different and certain impact categories were more relevant in one system than in the other. Nevertheless, both products are intended for the same kind of application and therefore allowed for a comparison of the environmental benefits. All in all, benefits in climate change could be observed for LIGALUB 19 TMP in comparison to DITA resulting in total carbon footprint savings of up to 61 %. These insights highlight the benefits of bio-based products and help customers in the lubricants industry in making informed choices. The need for a transition from fossil-based to renewable materials to achieve defossilisation and net-zero targets is clear.
www.nova-institut.de www.peter-greven.de
LUBE MAGAZINE NO.185 FEBRUARY 2025
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