FUELS & LUBRICANTS
ExxonMobil has also helped a Russian
limestone quarry extend its hydraulic oil drain
intervals by 25% by switching its Hitachi
excavators to Mobil DTE 10 Excel™ 46 hydraulic
oil
India. The company was using a conventional EP-
2 grease for lubrication of the bush-pins on its
Volvo and TATA Hitachi excavators. The need for
extensive re-greasing, once in a shift, and
premature pin failures was causing a loss in
productivity.
ExxonMobil therefore carried out on-site
inspections of the failed bush-pins and re-
greasing practices. “Along with amended
greasing procedures, our engineers
recommended the use of Mobilgrease XHP™ 322
Mine, an advanced lithium-complex, soap-based
grease with an ISO VG 320 base oil, fortified with
a high quality molybdenum disulphide additive.
As a result, the re-greasing intervals were
extended from once in a shift (every 6-8 hours) to
once in two days (48 hours). This led to an
increase in excavator up-time by more than two
hours a day along with superior protection of
the bush-pins, lower grease consumption,
which offered a potential annual saving of
$1,141,038.”
In new products the company is introducing
Mobil SHC Grease 68 Moly to EAME, with the
target markets being Russia, Kazakhstan,
Ukraine, Norway, Sweden and Finland. Mobil SHC
Grease 68 Moly is designed to be dispensable in
central grease systems at temperatures as low as
-50°C. This product is designed for central
greasing systems of mining equipment.
lubricants (2007). Total also developed its own
in-house testing methodology in order to verify
fuel economy results of Total’s lubricants. Today,
there are standardised international procedures 30 (API CK-4) especially designed for the mining
industry. These lubricants have passed stringent
performance requirements, such as Caterpillar
CAT ECF-3, Cummins CES 20086 and JASO DH-2
for Japanese engines like Komatsu. In addition,
independent bench testing on TOTAL RUBIA
WORKS 4000 FE SAE 10W-30 using an off-road
machine has indicated fuel economy savings of
1.89 % with excellent repeatability of test results.
This figure is proven by a fuel economy
certificate issued by Danielson Services
Laboratory in France.
To help identify economical savings associated
with the use of TOTAL RUBIA WORKS 4000 FE
SAE 10W-30, the following is provided in a simple
business case scenario. A Caterpillar 793F haul
truck operates 290 days/year, 24 hours a
day. Diesel fuel consumption of the vehicle
during operation averages at 150 litres /hour.
This equates to the haul truck consuming
1,044,000 litres of fuel per annum. Independent
bench testing has identified a 1.89% fuel
economy improvement from the use of the TOTAL
such as the globally harmonised Worldwide
Heavy Duty Transient Cycle (WHTC) for both hot
and cold start requirements; as well as the
Worldwide Heavy Duty Steady-state Cycle
(WHSC) in order to verify fuel economy
performances.
In its history of FE lubricant development,
Total says it analysed substantial data in on-road
and off-road application tests resulting in
extensive knowledge being gained around wear
control on ultra-low viscosity lubricants (HTHS of
2.9 cP and lower). This has resulted in TOTAL
being able to formulate FE lubricants with
equivalent oil film thickness independent (to
some extent) of the HTHS values.
This knowledge, combined with base oil and
additive technology has led to TOTAL having
launched the TOTAL RUBIA WORKS 4000 FE 10W- RUBIA WORKS 4000 FE SAE 10W-30. In the above
example, this translates to a fuel reduction of
19,731 litres per annum. Depending on the
number of equivalent equipment within a
fleet, significant savings in the total cost of
operation (TCO) per annum can be realised
through reduced fuel consumption.
“Total’s range of FE lubricants play an
essential role in reducing the operational fuel
costs of mining companies by utilising specific
viscosity grades and specially enhanced
additives designed to minimise the friction
responsible for 10-15% of energy loss within an
engine and drive train compartments. TOTAL’s
success in the development of FE lubricants has
resulted in TOTAL lubricants being utilised as first
fill lubricants for a number of OEM commercial
vehicles.” IM
Total says its range of FE lubricants
play an essential role in reducing the
operational fuel costs of mining
companies by utilising specific viscosity
grades and specially enhanced
additives designed to minimise the
friction responsible for 10-15% of
energy loss within an engine and
drivetrain compartments
Total FE lubricants for mining
Total was among the first to introduce Fuel-
Economy or Fuel-Efficient (FE) lubricants. The
journey started with passenger vehicles in 1993
with technology improvements being applied to
lubricants for transport (1997) and mining
JULY 2019 | International Mining 27