I have done a fair amount of reading on synthetic oils so I can
justify using them to others who are "non-believers". A hydrocarbon
molecule is nothing more than a chain of hydrogen and carbon atoms.
The chain length and structure can vary greatly depending on how it
was formed. In crude oil there is a massive amount of variation among
the hydrocarbons length and shape. Even whe refined this variation
still allows reactions to occur when they are not wanted. This is the
purpose of additives. They not only prevent foaming but they attempt
to counter-act thse undesired reactions. Sludge formation is just one
of these undesirable reactions. The variations among the shapes of
the hydrocarbon chains can also cause issues by affecting the way the
oil lubricates a moving part. If the chain is too short then it
doesn't provide enough lubrication on the molecular level. A chain
the is too long can restrict the flow of other chains thus causing
improper lubricant flow and excess friction of moving parts.
Synthetic oils create hydrocarbon chains in strictly controlled
environments that reduce the chain length and shape variations to a
mere fraction of even refined oil created from crude supplies. This
not only leads to a more stable product, but also a product whose
lubrication and flow properties can be easily predicted. This allows
for the use of additives that can be custom designed for those
specific hydrcarbon chains instead of using additives that must work
with a massive variety of chains. This leads to less additives by
volume in a much more uniform hydrocarbon structured oil that can
provide better lubrication due to more actual hydrocarbons per volume
than any additive infused refined oil can dream of producing.
Better stability, better lubrication, additives designed specifically
for its specifichydrocarbon structure; this leads to longer oil life,
longer engine life and better engine efficiency through reduced
friction.
WiLieR
On 2/10/08, jon@dakota-truck.net <jon@dakota-truck.net> wrote:
>
> "Bernd D. Ratsch" <bernd@dodgetrucks.org> wrote:
> > Amsoil Quote:
> > "PAO composition is a series of chemical processes that are designed to
> > provide superior lubrication performance over a wide temperature operating
> > range. They are synthetic hydrocarbons manufactured by a two-step process
> > from linear alpha-olefins produced from ethylene.
>
> > The first step in the synthesis is an oligomerization reaction,
> essentially
> > polymerization, with boron trifluoride in combination with a protic
> > co-catalyst. They are manufactured via Ziegler-Natta catalysts; usually
> > alkylaluminum compounds in conjunction with organic halides."
>
>
> > Hmmmm..."Organic Halides" - guess what - found in CRUDE OIL. ;)
>
>
> First of all, I am pretty sure the reference to "Organic Halides"
> in the above paragraph is talking about the catalyst, not the
> reactant. A Ziegler-Natta catalyst contains organometallic compounds
> (a compound created via a bond between a metal and carbon). Are there
> any chemists in the house who can confirm that?
>
> Secondly, group 4 base stock is created using ethylene gas, not
> crude oil. Ethylene gas is naturally occurring, it is released by
> ripening fruit, though it can be artificially synthesized as well,
> from natural gas, ethanol, and yes, crude oil. Although ethylene gas
> can be created using crude oil, this is more akin to a distillation
> process, as opposed to a refining process. Group 1 through 3 base
> stock is refined from crude. The crude oil itself is what is used as
> the base stock, with various levels of refining. Group 4 however, is
> CHEMICALLY created. It is not a refined version of the crude oil.
> Crude oil's only role in creating the ethylene gas that is
> subsequently used to create the group 4 base stock is to give up
> carbon and hydrogen atoms which are combined as C2H4 to create
> ethylene gas. A metallic catylist helps to convert the ethylene gas
> into the group 4 base stock. Crude oil does not have to be used to
> create the ethylene gas. They could throw a bunch of ripening fruit
> in a closed room and suck the gas it out of there if they wanted to.
> The fact that they might get the carbon and hydrogen they need from
> crude oil is a coincidence; it does NOT mean that group 4 base stock
> is a petroleum product.
>
> Think of it this way... Lets say you want a nice, refreshing glass
> of water, but all you have at hand is a big ol' pile of cow manure.
> You can squeeze some liquid out of that cow manure into a container
> and run it through a series of filters and such to try to get rid of
> most of the contaminants so that you are left with *mostly* water.
> This is the basic idea behind converting crude oil into the group 1
> through 3 base stock oils. Another way to get that glass of water
> would be to extract hydrogen and oxygen atoms from the manure, perhaps
> as H2 and O2 gasses, then take those hydrogen and oxygen atoms and
> combine them in a lab in a 2:1 ratio to create H2O. This is pure
> water, and it has absolutely no relationship to, or contaminants from
> the cow manure from which its atoms happened to be obtained. This is
> akin to how the group 4 base stock is created. Possibly from crude
> oil, but not necessarily. Any supply of carbon and hydrogen atoms
> will do.
>
> --
> -Jon-
>
> .- Jon Steiger -- jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com -.
> | '96 Kolb Firefly, '96 Suzuki Intruder, Miscellaneous Mopars |
> `-------------------------------- http://www.jonsteiger.com --'
>
>
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