Used lubricating oils (ULOs) represent a serious problem for environment and human health due to the presence of highly harmful contaminants, being mandatory an adequate management based on efficient collection systems and treatment processes. Within this work, the environmental and energy performance of a re-refining process for ULOs upgrading is evaluated. The proposed regeneration process is based on the extraction of organic contaminants with liquid propane followed by a cascade of three consecutive distillation stages (two under atmospheric conditions and an additional one under vacuum). This process operates at plan scale in Spain recovering base oil for reuse. All the operations were simulated using Aspen Plus 8.6 and environmental issues and performance was determined by LCA, considering global warming potential, cumulative energy demand, acidification and toxicity as impacts categories. Results show that the whole upgrading process generates up to 363 kg-eq CO 2 /tonne base oil (mainly associated with distillations heating requirements) and it consumes 6144 MJ/tonne base oil. Vacuum distillation is the most important contributor to acidification and toxicity, due to heating and electricity requirements of the column. These parameters were compared for upgraded base oil and refinery lubricant oil, and results suggested that great environmental impacts can be reduced by recycling oil. Finally, different LCA scenarios were considered by partitioning impacts among base oil and plant by-products, using mass flow and economic criteria. Regardless the impacts allocation method, results clearly indicate that manufacturing base oil by ULOs recycling is a more environmental friendly option than the conventional refinery process.

Recycling of used lubricating oil: Evaluation of environmental and energy performance by LCA

Recycling used engine oil (UEO) into concrete is a viable and clean solution, as UEO has functions similar to chemical additives (i.e. as a water reducer and air entrainer) for concrete production. However, prior to the use of this ecofriendly concrete within the building industry, its fire performance should be thoroughly evaluated to further prove the technical feasibility and promote its safe application. Here, the fire performance of UEO concrete following exposure to elevated temperatures was assessed by measuring its compressive strength and elastic modulus. Experimental outcomes suggest that concrete admixed with 2% UEO by mass of cementitious materials shows enhanced fire performance and that concrete admixed with 5% UEO exhibits comparable mechanical properties to reference concrete. In ascertaining the microstructural origins behind the mechanical performance changes, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis was conducted to analyze the surface morphology of UEO concrete. The analysis demonstrates that concrete with 2% UEO features densely packed fibrous calcium silicate hydrates (C–S–H) at 200 °C that contribute to strength increase. In addition, the surface characteristics of UEO concrete in terms of color changes, cracks, and pore density were analyzed to supplement the fire performance information, with the intention of facilitating structural health assessments following fire attacks. Moreover, the environmental and economic assessments of the proposed UEO disposal approach concerning carbon dioxide emissions, energy consumption, and costs, respectively, are discussed and contrasted with the mainstream disposal options. The discussion suggests that the present recycling strategy can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 8050–10750 kg, energy consumption by 2.87–4.13 billion MJ, and disposal costs by HK$3250–9450 per tonne of UEO. These findings will contribute to advancing a clean UEO management strategy and to engineering waste-enhanced concrete with desired fire performance for sustainable civil infrastructure. 

Recycling used engine oil in concrete: Fire performance evaluation

On average, approximately 22 thousand tons of new lubrication oil were marketed annually in Serbia in the period 2015–2019. Less than 20% of the waste lubrication oil (WLO) generated was treated, whereas the remainder was mostly uncollected or improperly disposed of. The purpose of this study is to examine different WLO management scenarios that could be implemented in Serbia in the future and to quantify their potential environmental benefits. Different WLO treatment processes (namely the re-refining of used oil for base oil recovery, the use of WLO as a substitute to fossil fuels in cement kilns, and the combustion of WLO in waste incinerators with energy recovery) were evaluated using the life cycle assessment (LCA) and ReCiPe 2016 impact assessment methods. The LCA results obtained indicate that no single WLO treatment process consistently exerts diminished environmental impacts according to all the impact categories considered. From a human health perspective, the incineration of WLO in waste incinerators was found more favourable than the other treatment processes considered, whereas the combustion in cement kilns was the most favourable approach with regard to ecosystem protection. In terms of fossil fuel savings, re-refining technologies performed slightly better than the other processes considered. This can be accounted for by significant amounts of marketable co-products generated in the re-refining process, which can be used as a substitute to fossil-based primary products. Furthermore, a total of four possible WLO management scenarios were developed on the basis of the annual quantities of untreated WLO and a mix of treatment options. The results obtained indicate that up to 22,100 t CO2 equivalent and 34,300 t oil equivalent could be saved annually in Serbia provided the most favourable WLO management scenario is considered.

Life Cycle Assessment of Different Waste Lubrication Oil Management Options in Serbia

Waste lubricating oil (WLO) is a catch-all name for many lubricating oils used in automobiles and machines. WLO has been designated as a hazardous waste in the eight major categories. Toxic substances such as heavy metals, chlorine, and sulphur are produced during the production process of lubricating oils due to the addition of additives or due to high temperatures and oxidation in use, which produce substances such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and polychlorinated biphenyls that are harmful to humans. The apparent global outlook on the availability of WLO and the issues it poses to environmental and human health if not properly disposed of is a strong motivator for research into the re-use, regeneration, and conversion of WLO into valuable and cleaner goods. This work, for the first time, comprehensively reviews WLO recycling technologies with a focus on catalytic cracking, techno-economics, and life cycle assessments. The commercial status of WLO industries, and the associated challenges and prospects of recycling WLO processing are outlined. The findings in this study suggest that, clay, spent catalysts and magnetite doped with barium and strontium metal ions offer sustainable and low-cost catalysts for WLO cracking, among other catalysts such as zeolites, metals and oxides, ash, carbon materials, and carbonates. There is a need to study WLO catalytic treatment processes' feasibility via techno-economic assessment, and the combination of multi-criteria decision making and life cycle assessment makes a powerful analytical tool to evaluate all the sustainability pillars. 

Recycling of waste lubricating oil: A review of the recycling technologies with a focus on catalytic cracking, techno-economic and life cycle assessments

This paper proposes a greener approach to the intensification of base oil recovery for truck engines (32,500 km of use) using ethanol, propan-2-ol, 2-methylpropan-1-ol, and butan-1-ol as solvents for the extraction of base oil, combining mechanical stirring (220 rpm) and ultrasound (25 °C, 24 kHz, and 400 W). The results indicated that the recovery yields of the base oil, using the mechanical stirring and ultrasound (MS-US) system, for ethanol, propan-2-ol, 2-methylpropan-1-ol, and butan-1-ol were approximately 3.1, 25.6, 71.6, and 85.5%, respectively. By contrast, the recovery yields using only mechanical stirring were 8.8, 28.9, 58.9, and 76.1%, respectively. The system with pre-extraction could effectively remove Ca (85.3-93.0%), Mg (67.2-82.9%), Na (31.7-62.5%), and Zn (0.0-71.7%). Finally, the results showed a reduction of almost 100% for the concentrations of Al, Cr, Fe, and Mo in the pre-extraction system. The mechanical stirring (5 min) and ultrasound (5 min) system were able to intensify the extraction process using environmentally friendly solvents.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s11356-021-15582-y.pdf

Base oil recovery from waste lubricant oil by polar solvent extraction intensified by ultrasound

The study aimed to evaluate the environmental impacts of used lubricating oil (ULO) recovery in the largest oil consumer country in Africa, Egypt. The main questions were: What are the impacts of the different waste management strategies for the recovery of used lubricating oil and which waste management strategy is more eco-friendly? Life cycle assessment (LCA) was employed to model the environmental impacts of the two waste management approaches for used lubricating oil recovery in Egypt: recycling by re-firing and recovery by co-firing. The model was applied to assess the impacts of one of the largest ULO recovery units in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and the only operating unit in Egypt. The following impact categories were included: global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential (AP), eutrophication potential (EP), carcinogens potential (CP), ecotoxicity potential (ETP), respiratory inorganic formation potential (RIFP), respiratory organic formation potential (ROFP), radiation potential (RP), ozone layer depletion (OLD), mineral depletion (MD), land use (LU) and fossil fuel depletion (FFD). Results indicated that recycling by re-refining strategy is more environment-friendly. De-asphalting, de-aromatization and de-waxing processes are the main processes that affect the environmental impacts of lubricating oil production in both strategies, due to the use of hazard materials and toxic solvents in these processes. Fuel gas and fuel oil used as a fuel in the refinery and power units are the main contributors affecting the environmental impacts in case of recycling by re-refining strategy. The highest impacts were detected on FFD, followed by RIFP, GWP, AP, EP, ETP and CP in both strategies; no impacts were detected on RP, OLD and MD. It can be concluded that recycling by re-refining of ULO is the more eco-friendly approach. This strategy is more energy conservative, saves a diminishing fossil fuel resource and reduces burdens on the environment. ULO containing high percentages of additive remnants such as viscosity index improvers and pour point depressants which represents a valuable resource and its proper management should be given the most attention.

Life cycle assessment of waste strategies for used lubricating oil

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Life cycle assessment of waste strategies for used lubricating oil