ILMA Compoundings December 2017 - 23

Table 2: High-Quality Base Oil Options (North America)
Manufacturing
Virgin

Group II+

Group III

Group III+

Group IV

Chevron, ExxonMobil,
HollyFrontier

Calumet, HollyFrontier

HollyFrontier

ExxonMobil, Chevron
Phillips, Ineos, Lanxess

SK Corp., Phillips 66
(S-Oil), Bapco, Neste,
ADNOC (Vertex Energy),
Tatneft

Shell, Petronas

Virgin (Imports)

Re-Refined

Safety-Kleen,
Heritage-Crystal Clean,
Advanta, Avista Oil,
Vertex Energy

Avista Oil

combination with nominal 100 VI Group II to costeffectively simulate a Group II+ quality. As the VI of many
commercial Group III base oils increased, the utilization of
such high-quality blending stock allowed the use of higher
levels of nominal 100 VI Group II base oils, to still achieve
the 115 VI blend target.
The number of combinations that are now available to
formulate a standard API SN and ILSAC GF-5 PCMO as
either an SAE 5W-20 or SAE 5W-30 is almost infinite, as
indicated in Figure 2.
The higher the quality of the primary base stock(s), the
higher the level of nominal 100 VI Group II that can be
used to balance the base oil blend to a target 4.8 cSt at 100

Figure 2:
Base Oil Combinations to Formulate
SAE 5W-20/30 Engine Oils
IV
GTL
III+
III
II+
Nominal 100 VI Group II Requirements, %

degrees Celsius and ~115 VI. This would allow one to easily
formulate a "market general" API SN and ILSAC GF-5
performance level. If one wishes to include GM dexos1™:Gen 2
performance, a higher-quality blended base oil would be
required, particularly in the areas of VI (i.e., higher) and
NOACK volatility (i.e., lower). The resulting blend will
have a higher concentration of high-quality base oil in the
finished lubricant.
Engine oil formulations have further evolved such that
both virgin and re-refined base oils can now be used, and
indeed are encouraged, by various authorities. The average
quality of used oils has increased over the years because
of the increasing demand for high-performance engine
oils, where the use of premium base oils are required. As
a result, the used oil that is collected and processed today
can often yield a base oil quality of Group II+ (see Table 1).
With improved used-oil collection systems and operational
segregation, higher-VI Group III is also now achievable,
as demonstrated domestically by Avista Oil and advertised
globally by Puraglobe.
The options that are available to produce high-quality
engine oils is further shown in Table 2, which provides an
overview of the various supply sources for Group II+, Group
III, Group III+ and Group IV base oils in the North American marketplace.
It is apparent that as the puzzle to formulate PCMO
products has become more complex, the number of options
has increased to accommodate the challenge. While the
availability of medium- to high-VI base oils was essentially
nonexistent in 1985, today one can choose a base oil where
the VI can range anywhere between 95 and 140-plus,
depending on the viscosity grade and group. This provides
great flexibility to the formulator of engine oils but can also
become a curse, as the number of base oil tanks at a blend
plant is typically very limited.
So, the question now becomes: Which of the puzzle pieces
are best to meet each customer's technical and volumetric
needs? This will be discussed in Part II of this series.
Henderson is president of K&E Petroleum Consulting.

ILMA Compoundings December 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of ILMA Compoundings December 2017