Synthetic oil has been chemically altered in a major way and has some benefits
over conventional oils.
I'm still annoyed that multi blend oils got on the market, which simplified life
and
increased profits for the oil companies....
The difference is in more than lubricating performance:
Unlike conventional oils, which are an extraction from crude oil, true Syn Oils
are manufactured from molecules created in a chemical plant. Conventional oils
and their effectiveness depend much on which crude a refinery is using....or how
much it has been "blended". And unfortunately, all those nice oil fields that
produced those wonderful crudes oils which, with minimum refining, could make
great motor oils, are/have being depleted. A rose is a rose, etc...but that
doesn't hold true for crude oil!
The various "nits & nats" in a crude mixture account for oil break down under
temperature stress. In true syn oils the nits & nats are all known quantities
(if they are even there) as it is a "created" substance, rather than an
extracted one.
For the chemists out there: the origin for syn oil is a 2 carbon molecule
(ethylene) strung together over catalyst to produce a 10 carbon linear chain,
which one double bond. Linearity is the important factor here: side branches or
ring compounds are a no-no.
Producers for this molecule are rather limited: Chevron, Shell, and Amoco. The
PAO (poly-alpha-olefin) producers such as Mobil, Chevron, Amoco, string several
of these 10 carbon chains together over catalyst to produce various viscosity
oils for rail, marine, and auto use.
One of the reasons the Syn price is higher than conventional oils (other than it
obviously costs more to make it...) is that PAO producers are limited in their
market by feedstock for manufacturing this product. For years, market demand
has grown faster than ability to supply. And the big auto market for syn oils
is not necessarily in the USA, but areas of the world where folks **Pay a Lot**
for autos and fuel, and buy syn lube/oil in an effort to extend the life of
their precious motors.
And that's probably more information than anyone has ever wanted to
know...!!!(grin)
Anneke - Houston
PS: Like Arch, I have no affiliation with Mobil or syn oil....but I do know
something of the alpha olefin that goes into making PAO.
over conventional oils.
I'm still annoyed that multi blend oils got on the market, which simplified life
and
increased profits for the oil companies....
The difference is in more than lubricating performance:
Unlike conventional oils, which are an extraction from crude oil, true Syn Oils
are manufactured from molecules created in a chemical plant. Conventional oils
and their effectiveness depend much on which crude a refinery is using....or how
much it has been "blended". And unfortunately, all those nice oil fields that
produced those wonderful crudes oils which, with minimum refining, could make
great motor oils, are/have being depleted. A rose is a rose, etc...but that
doesn't hold true for crude oil!
The various "nits & nats" in a crude mixture account for oil break down under
temperature stress. In true syn oils the nits & nats are all known quantities
(if they are even there) as it is a "created" substance, rather than an
extracted one.
For the chemists out there: the origin for syn oil is a 2 carbon molecule
(ethylene) strung together over catalyst to produce a 10 carbon linear chain,
which one double bond. Linearity is the important factor here: side branches or
ring compounds are a no-no.
Producers for this molecule are rather limited: Chevron, Shell, and Amoco. The
PAO (poly-alpha-olefin) producers such as Mobil, Chevron, Amoco, string several
of these 10 carbon chains together over catalyst to produce various viscosity
oils for rail, marine, and auto use.
One of the reasons the Syn price is higher than conventional oils (other than it
obviously costs more to make it...) is that PAO producers are limited in their
market by feedstock for manufacturing this product. For years, market demand
has grown faster than ability to supply. And the big auto market for syn oils
is not necessarily in the USA, but areas of the world where folks **Pay a Lot**
for autos and fuel, and buy syn lube/oil in an effort to extend the life of
their precious motors.
And that's probably more information than anyone has ever wanted to
know...!!!(grin)
Anneke - Houston
PS: Like Arch, I have no affiliation with Mobil or syn oil....but I do know
something of the alpha olefin that goes into making PAO.
