MOL, Taihokozai develop lubricity additive to help low-sulphur fuels

JAPAN's Mitsui OSK Lines (MOL), together with Taihokozai Company, have developed a fuel oil lubricity additive named, "Lub-Up HS," which improves the lubricity of fuel oil in small doses within high-temperature environments.

MOL and Taihokozai began their collaboration to develop the fuel oil additive two years ago.

Said MOL: "The excellent lubricity achieved with Lub-Up HS has been proved by HFRR test machine and the four-ball machine test at the laboratory level. The same results were verified by MOL's originally modified abrasive wheel wear test machine at high-temperature usage environments, which was impossible to verify by the above two test method."

It added that the additive has been produced because the use of lower sulphur fuels that meet global low sulphur marine fuel oil regulations results in lower fuel oil lubricity. This may cause malfunction of fuel pumps and other fuel line machinery, which the additive is said to reduce.