A specialty lubricant from Dow Corning is heading to the Antarctic on a record-breaking expedition during extreme polar winter temperatures. The Coldest Journey expedition team members selected Molykote 55 O-ring grease as they bid to complete the first-ever trans-Antarctic crossing during the polar winter.

It was chosen because of its ability to meet the challenges of equipment reliability in extreme environments. It is expected to provide dynamic lubrication for mission-critical rubber-to-metal seals with excellent elastomer compatibility, corrosion protection and high oxidation resistance. It slightly swells rubber O-rings to help ensure positive lubrication and sealing.

The expedition team of five people will cover 2,000 miles—mostly in darkness, at temperatures as low as –89.9°C. In total, the team will spend an estimated six months—Mar. 31 through Sept. 31, 2013—on the ice. The anticipated challenges of the polar winter required the team to conduct extensive research and testing to identify supplies and equipment that would work best under the demanding environmental conditions.
www.molykote.com

Petro-Canada Lubricants Inc.'s SYNDURO SHB 46 fluid has met the physical and performance requirements of Voith, and is therefore suitable for lubrication of Voith Vorecon gearboxes.
 
“This approval comes as a great step for Petro-Canada as we work to convert the Suncor Oils Sands equipment over to Petro-Canada Lubricants,” reports Joanna Ha, SYNDURO category manager with Petro-Canada. “SYNDURO SHB 46 exceeds many of the Vorecon requirements and we are very proud to have the approval of Voith moving forward.”
 
Suncor currently operates a number of Voith Vorecon variable speed planetary type RWE11F6 gearboxes that are used in conjunction with boiler feed pumps at the FireBag facility in Alberta. Based on performance testing and Vorecon specifications, Petro-Canada has recommended SYNDURO SHB 46 for optimal lubrication of the machines. SYNDURO SHB 46 is a synthetic ISO 46 grade lubricant using PAO baseoils that are blended with selected additives to produce this exceptional synthetic fluid.
 
To demonstrate compliance with the Vorecon specifications, various physical and performance tests were completed that showed the fluid was suitable for use with the Vorecon units. In addition to meeting the Voith requirements, it offers a higher level of oxidation stability and EP protection than would normally be required for this application.

The synthetic multifunctional fluids are designed for a range of gear, bearing and compressor applications — in the forestry, mining, marine and heavy duty industries where low seasonal start-up temperatures and/or high operating temperatures prevail.

In new equipment, SYNDURO SHB fluids meet or exceed OEM requirements where synthetic lubricants are recommended. In older equipment, SYNDURO SHB provides anti-wear and anti-corrosion protection for high speed gears and bearings operating at maximum capacity. Available in 32, 46, 68, 150, 220, and 460 grades, SYNDURO SHB fluids allow for a consolidation of lubricants, reduce plant-wide lubrication inventory and can reduce the chances of misapplication.
lubricants.petro-canada.ca

Centralized lubrication systems deliver an engineered amount of lubricant on a frequent or even continual basis. Their end point bearing surfaces can last up to three times longer than similar applications that use manually applied lubrication. Ideally, mating bearing surface areas requires only enough fluid film to stop the bearing surface high points from colliding into one another. This state is termed "full film lubrication," and centralized systems are designed to achieve a constant "full film lubrication" state.

Manually lubricated bearing points are often not as lucky, and tend to suffer in two ways: from neglect, in which the bearing is merely forgotten and lubricated infrequently, if at all; and from over-lubrication, in which the bearing receives excess lubricant in the mistaken belief that "more is better". In both instances bearings are subjected to friction. Too little lubricant, and bearing surfaces collide. This metal to metal contact in turn causes friction, which causes the bearing to overheat and accelerate wear. Conversely, too much lubricant causes "churning" or fluid friction, which once again overheats the bearing and promotes wear acceleration.

A centralized lubrication system is usually comprised of a pump, controller, sensing device(s), lubricant metering devices, and distribution tubing/mounting hardware. In most cases, the return on investment for a centralized system is quickly realized through equipment uptime, extended bearing life, energy reduction and reduction in lubricant use. The only exception to this is in remote or forgotten locations where only one or two points require lubrication and installing remote electrical or compressed air power, or running lengthy exposed distribution lines is often not feasible. Typical examples of this include roof fans, remote pumping stations, cranes, elevator drives, conveyor drives, etc. These kinds of locations are the perfect application for the single point automatic lubricator.

Although not new in the marketplace, the single point automatic lubricator solution is often overlooked. Designed initially as a mechanical, spring-loaded device, it has evolved into a much more complex electronically-controlled device. There are presently three major styles of single point lubricators available: the spring-loaded lubricator, the chemical discharge lubricator and the electro-chemical discharge lubricator. All of these perform a similar function, but the degree of control is vastly different for each device type.

THE SPRING LOADED LUBRICATOR
Often called an "automatic grease cup," this simple device consists of a "jam pot" style reservoir housing a compressible spring and is attached to a follower plate. The reservoir is filled by a grease nipple in the cup base; with the reservoir full of grease, spring tension pushes against the follower and discharges the grease into the bearing cavity. Invented in the first part of the 20th century, this device virtually pioneered the science of automatic lubrication. The unit's rate of control however, is highly variable and often difficult to monitor consistently due to spring tension (often adjustable at the device), bearing back-pressure, grease thickness and ambient temperature (warmer temperatures allow the grease to flow faster).

THE CHEMICAL DISCHARGE LUBRICATOR
A one-time use device, the chemical discharge lubricator comes pre-filled with grease and is mounted directly at the bearing point. The metal reservoir is divided into two sections separated by a follower plate type piston. Grease is contained on the lower bearing side of the reservoir. In the upper chamber, an inflatable bladder contains an electrolyte solution into which an operator, via a mechanical screw device on top of the reservoir, releases a metallic pellet into the solution. A chemical reaction ensues which produces a gas that pressurizes the bladder; as the bladder inflates, the piston pushes the grease into the bearing cavity at a controlled rate.

Chemical discharge units are sold with different pellet sizes, which control the rate of gas production and rate of flow; units are generally calibrated for one, two, three, six, 12, or 24 month dispensing periods. Once the chemical process is activated, the unit cannot be turned off. Certain units produce a hydrogen flammable gas and workers must exercise extreme care when handling spent units.

THE ELECTRO-CHEMICAL DISCHARGE LUBRICATOR
Another one-time use device, the electro-chemical discharge lubricator performs in a similar fashion. Lubricant is displaced as a result of a hermetically sealed bellow displacing against a follower piston pushing against the lubricant. Expansion gas is created via an electro-chemical reaction; electronically controlled battery power is pulsed into an electrolyte to create a gas, which is then released into the bellows.

Unlike the chemical reaction lubricator, this electronic device is fully adjustable and can be turned on and off. These types of lubricators produce a much safer inert Nitrogen gas.

These types of lubricators are comparatively inexpensive (under $50.00) and primarily work best with grease lubricant. The manufacturers of the chemical and electro-chemical lubricators provide engineering charts that allow the operator to compensate for grease weight, temperature and atmospheric pressure. Like all automatic lubricating devices they must be checked, filled or replaced, on a regular basis and their use is best monitored through an active preventive maintenance program.

---

Ken Bannister is a principal management consultant with Engtech Industries Inc. in Cambridge, Ont. You can reach Ken at(519)622-4211 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Staying competitive in the food industry means keeping food processing machinery working harder and longer. At Maple Leaf Foods, a global food processing company, equipment is routinely expected to operate at 3600 rpm for up to 16 hours a day. To keep its machinery running effectively, Maple Leaf has to constantly find new and innovative ways to eliminate downtime and improve its maintenance program.

One way the company has managed to maximize productivity and save money is by streamlining its lubricant product line with food-grade lubricants. Previously Maple Leaf was using several different types of lubricants at its Toronto, Ontario, canning facility. The maintenance team at the plant believed that the old products were not performing well in conditions of extreme temperature and were causing undue wear in the equipment. The company decided to switch over to a food-grade lubricant in 1995, following a particularly serious lubrication failure in its steam-injected machinery.

Lou Falcone, a maintenance manager at Maple Leaf for more than nine years, was responsible for implementing the change.

"We were having problems applying our regular food grade greases in our steam-injected machinery," Falcone recalls. "The steam was melting the grease and causing the equipment to seize up because of a lack of lubrication. We switched over to a food-grade lubricant from Petro- Canada because it stayed in place in the face of extreme temperatures."

Maple Leaf chose a non-toxic, industrial strength food grade lubricant, known as Purity FG, designed to handle demanding extreme temperature applications, and says he has found success with it in other food processing facilities. In 1997, when he was given the job of keeping 60 diverse pieces of food processing equipment running smoothly at the company's deli processing plant, Falcone once again decided to use a lubricant from the same product line to deal with that plant's lubrication needs.

"The deli plant was outfitted with a lot of complex machinery, such as hamstuffers, emulsifiers, polyclippers, blenders, hydroflakers and conveyors," Falcone explains. "Each of these processors needed its own specific lubricants and viscosity grades to operate effectively — products our old supplier didn't offer. Fortunately, our supplier carried a full line of food grade products, which allowed us to optimize our equipment's performance."

Because the products are non-toxic, Maple Leaf does not have to worry about running afoul of stringent government regulations. Falcone chose products that pass the requirements for contact with food, including CFIA, FDA CFR 178.3570 and USDA-H1. It is virtually colourless and odourless, and is approved by Star K for Kosher and Pareve applications. It also comes with a "Letter of No Objection" from the CFIA, which meant that no extra paper work was required to bring it on board.

---

Denis Renaud is the Category Manager, Fluids, for Petro-Canada Lubricants.