In May 2005 the European Commission published its decision to establish an ED eco-label for lubricants. The environmental and technical criteria are challenging, more so than those currently specified in existing country specific eco-labels. The most significant difference between existing country specific labels and the new European eco-label is the requirement to formulate lubricants with a high renewables content. Petrochemical esters, such as adipate esters, have long been used as a primary basefluid used to formulate low viscosity and more oxidatively stable lubricants and greases, however the high renewables content required to conform to the EU eco-label will restrict the formulator to increased use of natural or synthetic oleochemical esters as the primary lubricant base fluid. For demanding applications, synthetic oleochemical esters will have the most important role to play and in this paper we will detail the current lubricant technologies available as well as detailing two new products that show improved oxidative and hydrolytic stability and a satisfactory profile for use in EU eco-label products.
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