Lubricant additives are organic or inorganic compounds that are dissolved or suspended as solids in oil. Lubricant additives typically range between 0.1 to 30 percent of the oil volume, depending on how much your machine needs.

This makes them an important part of a lubricant’s formulation and performance — but they are not always used for the same purpose. Lubricant Additives  can be divided into several different groups: antiwear, antioxidant, extreme pressure, fuel, and additive packages.

Anti Wear agents (AW) are used to prevent wear by reducing friction between contacting surfaces. They accomplish this by forming a protective layer between those surfaces and slowing down surface contact during sliding. In order to accomplish this task, AWs must adhere well to metal surfaces, which is why they are often referred to as boundary film formers (BFFs).

The most common types of lubricant additives are:

Dispersants — help keep the particles suspended in the fluid so they don’t settle out.

Antioxidants — reduce oxidation and corrosion by neutralizing free radicals that can lead to the degradation of base oils.

Friction modifiers — reduce friction and wear by changing the surface properties of metal surfaces.

Anti-wear additives — help prevent wear and reduce friction by reducing surface roughness and adhesion between moving surfaces.

Base oils are the foundation of lubricants and are typically derived from crude petroleum refining.

Additives are a must-have for the modern lubricant, but when all is said and done, what do they really do in our oil?

The basic role of an additive is to either enhance or suppress certain properties of the base oil. For example, it's common for additives to serve as deactivators in EP oils—they don't stop the oil from exhibiting EP properties when called upon by the engine, but they do impede its generation of acidic and other undesirable contaminants. In fact, one of the most important roles of additives is to counteract the deteriorating effects of oxidation on the base oil. The additives in an oil help protect it from harmful UV radiation, air, water, and other contaminants which would otherwise affect its chemical makeup.

So what else do additives do? They also play a role in making sure that your engine is properly lubricated. Each additive has a different job to do, such as enhancing or suppressing base oil properties. Some additives even serve multiple roles. For example, a viscosity index improver can also be an antioxidant. Other examples include pouring point depressants and anti-foam agents.

Types of Lubricant Additives:

Anti-oxidants:

Oxidation is the attack by oxygen of the weakest components in motor oil. It occurs at all temperatures and is accelerated by water and contaminants. It ultimately causes acids to form and sludge to build up. To prevent this from happening, manufacturers add chemicals called oxidation inhibitors that "sacrifice" themselves so that the oil can continue to lubricate effectively.

Antioxidants (Viscosity Modifiers)

Antioxidants act as viscosity modifiers by preventing oxidation products from forming insoluble polymers, which would otherwise thicken the oil or gel it completely. This makes it easier for engine parts to move past each other without causing friction at high temperatures. The temperature at which this happens is called “the pour point” or “the cloud point” and is very important because if your engine overheats, it will seize up!

Viscosity Index Improvers:

Viscosity index improvers are oil additives that improve the viscosity of oil at high temperatures. They are typically used in multi-grade oils, such as SAE 5W30, which is an effort to provide two different viscosities to the end user.

In order to understand how VI improvers work and why they are required in some engine oils, it's important to first understand what viscosity is. For example, water has a very low viscosity, while honey has a much higher one.

Viscosity is affected by temperature – as the temperature increases, liquids become more viscous (thicker) while gases become less viscous (lighter). This means that when you take your car out on a cold winter morning, you'll have to wait longer than usual before it starts because the oil in your engine has become much more viscous at these low temperatures (the same principle applies to gasoline).

Viscosity index improvers (VIIs) are high molecular weight polymers that are added to base oil stocks. The VI improver additive is a large molecule with high viscosity at low temperatures and low viscosity at high temperatures. The VI improver additive has a uniform orientation in the base oil stock, and this orientation provides the property of thixotropy.

The VI improver additive is added to an oil system to increase its viscosity index (VI) without increasing its pour point or cloud point. Increasing the VI of oil reduces fuel consumption in internal combustion engines by improving lubrication of the engine’s internal parts during cold start conditions.

Viscosity Index Improvers (VIIs) do have a couple of negative features:

The additives are large (high molecular weight) polymers, which makes them susceptible to being chopped or cut up into small pieces by machine components (shearing forces). 

In the end: The lubricant additives manufactured by Top Polymer, UAE, are designed & certified with international standards and can be used in a range of machinery.

We have a team of experts who are dedicated to providing our clients with the best quality products. We offer a wide range of lubricant additives for different applications. Our products are available in various sizes and packaging options as per your requirements. You can choose from a variety of different grades and viscosities to suit your needs.

Top Polymer is one of the leading lubricant additive manufacturers in UAE, which offers high-quality products at competitive prices. 

Lubricant additives manufactured by Top Polymer, UAE are designed & certified with international standards and can be used in a range of machinery. Lubricant additives manufactured by Top Polymer are available in various forms, such as emulsifiable concentrate (EC), spray-dried powder (SD), solid stick, granules, micro-suspension liquid and others.

Lubricant additives manufactured by Top Polymer can be used in various industries, such as:

Oil & Gas Industry

Power Generation Industry

Chemical Processing Industry

Food & Beverage Industry