Many anti-wear (AW) and extreme pressure (EP) additives are based on phos-
phorus/ sulfur/heterocycles components (see Figure 2). Novitas offers a wide range
of phosphorus based AW additives for instance, TPPT (AW-3001), triaryl phos-
Today, Novitas will present three main
product categories:
1) Friction Modifier (FM),
2) Anti-wear (AW) additive, and
3) Extreme pressure (EP) additive.
These additives offer innovative so -
lutions for today’s automotive, indus-
trial and grease applications. Reduc ing
friction is the key to improving energy
efficiency, minimizing wear and is cru-
cial to machinery reliability. Boosting
load carrying without resorting to chlo -
rinated paraffin or sulfurs is important
for environment/health benefits. These
three subjects are top priorities for
many lubricant formulators.
Molybdenum type additive is known
in industry as a Friction Modifier (see
Figure 1) through its self-decomposi-
tion and interactions with surrounding
additives such as ZNDTP or other sul-
fur containing additives. Traditional
type Mo additives with Mo2SxOy core
are widely used in automotive, indus-
trial, and grease applications. How -
ever, it has been reported that these
Molybdenum additives lose their fric-
tion reducing effects over time due to
the instability of the MoS2 film gener-
ated in-situ. Today Novitas offers tra-
ditional types (e.g. FM-5104 and 5208)
as well a new class of Molybdenum
additives with a stable Mo2S4 core (for
instance, FM-5308, FM-5413).
Introducing Novitas’s Specialty Additives (SA):FM/AW/EP AdditivesBy Liwen Wei, Novitas Chem Solutions, LLC
NOVITAS CHEM SOLUTIONS, LLC was founded in 2006 to provide consulting services with an
emphasis on innovation and business solutions for the lubricant industry. We have since forged
trusting and long-term partnerships with clients and customers that enable Novitas to offer top
notch specialty products emphasizing Innovation, Quality, and Value Creation.
Novitas Chem Solutions, LLC
Figure 1. Molybdenum Type FM Chemistry
Figure 2. AW/EP Chemistry
Reprinted from CMF PLUS 2015
phates (AW-3305) as well as amine
phosphates (AW-3160) and thiophos-
phates (AW-3211). Through 4-ball test-
ing (ASTM D4172) we compared these
phosphorus based additives including
AW-3211, a patent pending additive,
with the industry leading/competitive
AW additive in PAO 40 and in ISO 68
polyol ester.
In PAO40 study (see Table 1) we con-
firm that Novitas’ patent pending thio-
phosphate additives (AW-3211) is by
far the most effective AW additive from
0.05wt% to 0.5wt%, outperforming AW-
3180 and AW-3160 which are popular
in many industrial lubricants. A com-
petitive thiophosphate additive that is
known to be a FZG booster, was effec-
tive at low dosage, however, it became
a “wear” additive when dosage goes
beyond 0.25wt%. This competitive
additive has a strong and offensive
odor, indicative of possible more cor-
rosive sulfur present. When we change
the base oil to ISO 68 POE (see Table 2),
AW-3211 remains the best performing
AW additive (as is AP-6100 that con-
tains AW-3211). Interestingly however,
we noticed the fluids additized with
AW-3211 after testing did not show any
color changes while other phosphorus
based additives darkened during test-
ing. Color change of test fluids is at -
tributed to the frictional heat generat-
ed during the 4-ball runs. No color
change suggests a minimum friction
heat generated.
No color change noted in 4-ball
testing (see Table 2), we believe, is the
result of unique film forming and fric-
tion reducing capability of this addi-
tive as may be shown by the Stribeck
curve (see Figure 3). Too much of the
film forming capability gives more
wear, as in the case of the competitive
products (see Table 1). Not enough film
forming capability, AW becomes less
effective. The following AW trend may
thus be proposed:
AW-3211 > AW-3180 > AW-3160 > AW-3305
(continued on next page)
Table 1. NCS 3211 Outperforms Competitors in PAO40
In PAO40 0.05% 0.10% 0.25% 0.50%
NCS-3211 0.353 0.327 0.344 0.35
NCS-3180 0.588 0.434 0.327 0.406
NCS-3160 0.647 0.318 0.325 0.341
Competitive Products 0.441 0.46 0.613 0.648
Table 2. Friction Reducing Anti-wear (FR-AW)
*Patent Pending:A Novel Class ofAW/FR Additive
No Additive 1.125 Dark
AW-3305 1.096 (1%) Dark
AW-3305 0.517 (3%) Dark (A)
AW-3211 0.513 (0.25%) No Change (B)
AP-6100 0.471 (1.5%) No Change
ISO 68 Ester Average Scar ColorBase Oil Diameter (mm) Change
Figure 3. Innovative Solutions for EHL Lubrication
Elasto-hydrodynamicRegion: Non-conformingSurfaces suffer elasticstrains at the contactwhere by pressure/frictionincreases dramatically;such contacts withinsufficient film-forming(AW-FR) additivesprotection shall lead tomixed/boundarylubrication with excessiveheat generation.
Figure 4. EAL EP Additive for Grease: EP-2000 (AEP)
Lignin – is the most abundant natural aromatic organic polymerfound in all vascular plants (From Merck Index, 11th ed).
EP-2000 (AEP) is an native Lignin nano-sized (up to 10 micron) tosuit Grease Applications. It readily absorbed into the soap greasestructure and provide EP and antioxidancy, and thickening effectwhen used in high dosage.
Example
Base Grease*
1% Novitas AEP
3% Novitas AEP
4-Ball Weld Load KGf
160
200
315
4-Ball Weld Scar KGf
0.70
0.65
0.60
*Base grease: Li Soap grease
EP Additives such as chlorinated
paraffins and sulfurs are widely used
in industry, however, have long been
scrutinized due to their environ-
ment/health concerns. As alternatives
to these EP additives, Novitas offers a
native lignin based EP additive for
environmentally friendly grease appli-
cations: EP-2000 (previously named
AEP, see Figure 4) and a highly effective
phosphate based EP additive EP-2301E
(see Figure 5) that was found to be ef -
fective in replacing chlorinated paraf-
fin at a reduced dosage. For in stance
5wt% EP-2301E gives the same 4-ball
weld load as that of 25wt% chlorinated
paraffin in heavy neutral and 50wt%
chlorinated paraffin in ISO 56 alkyl
benzene. Here we see an interesting
base oil effect where the use of polar
base oils such as alkyl benzene give
higher weld load than heavy neutral
base oils.
Novitas has a wide range of NSF
approved additives and base oils with
some of the products listed in Figure 6
for food grade applications. AO-1300
is PANA antioxidant with excellent
qualities. AW-TPPT is another example
of excellent qualities where we offer
the highest purity and noncorrosivity
(see Figure 7) in industry with Kosher
certification.
Figure 8 is the modular formulation
approach where Novitas offers special-
ty additives (SA) including the three
product categories, friction modifier
(FM), anti-wear (AW), and extreme
pressure (EP), presented in this talk,
along with antioxidants (AO) and cor-
rosion inhibitors (CI) for industrial/
grease applications. Through these
specialties Novitas strives to provide
innovative and quality products you
can count on to win the race for better
lubrication.
Novitas Chem Solutions, LLC (continued)
Figure 5. Heavy Duty Extreme Pressure EP-2301E
Figure 6. NSF Certification for Food Grade ApplicationsNSF Certified List:
AO-1300 151038 HX-1AW-3004 149338 HX-1CI-4309 150207 HX-1AW-3160 150180 HX-1AW-TPPT 149270 HX-1WI 1715 151037 HX-1WS 5100 149337 HX-1WS 660 151073 HX-1
Figure 7. Quality Products You Can Count On
Figure 8. Modular Formulation for Industrial & Grease Lubrication
Novitas TPPT
• Flakes, >99% purity
• NSF and Kosher Certified
• Non-Corrosive
This article reprinted with permission from the November 2015 issue of TLT, the official monthly magazine of theSociety of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers, an international not-for-profit technical society headquartered in Park Ridge, Illinois.