Copolymers of castor and corn oils with lauryl methacrylate as green lubricating additives

Abstract

During the last few years, the greener additives prepared from bio-raw materials with low-cost and multifunctional applications have attracted considerable attention in the field of lubricant industry. In the present work, copolymers derived from castor and corn oils with decyl methacrylate were prepared by free radical polymerization using benzoyl peroxide (BPO) as a thermal initiator. Direct polymerization of fatty acid double bonds results in the development of environmentally friendly copolymeric additives (Co-1 and Co-2). The resulting copolymers were characterized by Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H-NMR) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR). Thermogravimetric analysis was employed to determine the thermal decomposition of copolymers. The average molecular weight was measured by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) method. Different concentrations of prepared copolymer as additives vis 1, 2, 3, and 4 (w/v) were used to examine the performance evaluation and rheological behavior of the formulated base oil. The prepared copolymers show good thermal stability. Both prepared polymeric additives (Co-1 and Co-2) are evaluated as pour point depressant and excellent viscosity improver. The base oil blended with Co-1 has higher viscosity index value than the lubricant oil mixed with Co-2. The values of pour point for the lubricant oil blended with Co-1 and Co-2 are ranging from (-11 to -15 oC) and (-12 to -15 oC), respectively.