Base Oils I: An Introduction
Base oils are the primary ingredient in finished lubricant formulations for automobiles, trucks, industrial lubricants, and a host of other products. The rise of different base oil manufacturing processes – and the different base oil types produced by each process – creates a difficult maze for refiners, marketers, and supply managers, especially those new to lubes. The product naming conventions, such as "100N" or "4cSt", are a vexation to those not familiar with base oils. Crude selection to maximize fuels profitability is often in conflict with crudes that are profitable for lube base oils, further complicating the manufacturing economics as well as the qualities of base oils. Navigate the maze and join ICIS for a day of introductory base oil training, led by an industry consultant with over 30 years of experience in base oil refining, international crude selection, and global lube supply and demand.
Not right for you? Try our Base Oils II course.
All of our Base Oils courses are also available in-house. Find out more
Benefits to you and your company:
Understanding the different factors affecting the base oils market is crucial. The information provided in this course will help you function more effectively regardless of which part of the base oils supply chain your company operates in.
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By the end of the course you will learn about:
- Base oils refining processes: Get a brief overview of crude oil refining and the role of base oils in the crude oil value chain. To understand the difference between paraffinic and naphthenic base oils, a section is included on crude types and terminology. Global base oil refining capacity within the worldwide refining industry gives context to how base oil manufacturing fits into the refining puzzle. You get to understand the various base oil refining processes, and the differences between base oils produced by each process.
- Solvent processing and hydroprocessing manufacturing technologies: Get basic information on solvent processing as well as hydroprocessing for the manufacturing of lube base oils. The evolution of each type of process helps course attendees understand why most of the world’s base oil is still “Group I”, or produced via solvent processing technology. The global rise of hydroprocessing technology, along with the collateral damage that has resulted from this technology, are also covered.
- Product qualities and market demand segments: Gain a broad understanding of the base oil supply chain and the finished lubricants market. Plus, the product quality, demand and trade components of the base oil business are also covered. A comparison of key API Group I, II and III base oil properties highlights the similarities and differences among the different types of base oils. Base oils are combined with additives to make finished lubricants, and an overview is provided covering finished lubricant major market segments, including transportation, industrial and process oils. Sessions on trade, pricing and the role of additives in finished lubricant manufacturing completes the value chain.
- Base oils market: Get an overview of future perspectives on the base oil industry. This includes a discussion of today’s most influential base oil suppliers and buyers, trends in manufacturing for each global region, and the potential for new base oils from gas-to-liquids technology.
Hands-on practice:
During the course there will be reviews of the presentations including quizzes to help check and reinforce understanding.
Course fees:
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Morning
REGISTRATION AND REFRESHMENTS
Welcome, safety and housekeeping
Refining - part of the crude oil value chain
- Integrated oil company overview
- Crude types and terminology
- Crude oil refineries: where base oils are made
Base oil manufacturing: solvent processing
- Base oil overview - definitions and terminology
- Historical base oil manufacturing: solvent processing
- Today’s paraffinic and naphthenic solvent processing
REFRESHMENTS / Q&A
Base oil manufacturing: hydroprocessing
- Hydroprocessing terms and general overview
- Lube hydroprocessing: the technology that changed everything
- Paraffin wax and bright stock: “collateral damage”
Self-quiz and group review
LUNCH
Base oil product quality fundamentals
- The API base oil groups: I, II, III, IV and V
- The “informal” groups: I+, II+ and III
- Comparison of solvent and hydroprocessing product qualities
Base oil demand segments, or Finished Lubricants 101
- Overview of major markets: definitions by sector, by region
- Transportation, industrial and process oil segments
REFRESHMENTS
Lubricant additives and finished lubricant supply chain
- Additive introduction and overview
- Major roles of additives
- Finished lubricant supply chain
The future of base oil – trends to watch
- Manufacturing: shared fuels-lubes hydrocracking
- Game changer: Gas-to-liquids (GTL)
- The Base Oils II Agenda
Feedback forms - class survey
Closing remarks and end of seminar
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Amy Claxton
Amy Claxton, P.E. is a registered professional Chemical Engineer and owns a consulting company called My Energy. Her clients include publicly traded and privately held oil, gas, lube and wax companies, as well... read more
Dr. H. Ernest Henderson
Dr. H. Ernest Henderson received a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Windsor in 1977, after which he spent 19 years with Imperial Oil and Exxon in technical and managerial positions involving Research... read more
Terry Hoffman
Terry Hoffman is a base oil marketing and operations oriented professional with over 40 years of experience.
He owns a consulting company called thoffmanllc and his clients include publicly traded and... read more
Read more about our course leaders.
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- New and experienced base oil marketing and sales staff, and those in support functions such as supply, accounting, planning and logistics
- New and experienced finished lubricant buyers and sellers
- New and experienced personnel in the terminalling, storage and shipping industry
- Base oil refiners, additive suppliers, finished lubricant formulators and other technical staff who want to broaden their knowledge of base oil refining processes and the overall base oil industry
- Senior oil industry executives who are new to base oils or finished lubricants
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