ExxonMobil Lubricants and Specialties has introduced a new lubricating oil that has been formulated to reduce deposit formation in gas turbines
Launched at ADIPEC, Mobil DTE 932 GT has been specially designed to limit deposit formation in diminutive valves within gas turbine machinery.
"We've developed this product to specifically address an issue we've noted in the industry with varnish formation and this product has excellent performance in terms of preventing deposit formation," said Yan M Cote, global business development advisor for ExxonMobil Lubricants & Petroleum Specialties Company.
Speaking to Oil Review Middle East, Cote said one of the key issues the new product was adept at resolving was valve sticking.
"This product is used where a common reservoirs is used for both hydraulic and bearing lubrications, so as varnish forms it has a tendency to plug valves. This product, by mitigating deposit formation, helps the system continue to work more reliably," he remarked.
ExxonMobil built a proprietary rig to simulate conditions harsher than those in the Middle East would experience, in order to test the lubricant.
"This product has been designed for long life and use with the objective of reducing the amount of downtime or unplanned maintenance required," Cote noted.
"From an environmental care perspective if you can make the oil last longer, which the deposit formation capability of this product does, and it means you need to use less oil and dispose of less oil over the life of that turbine.
"From a productivity standpoint trips in this industry are very expensive, so with the deposit formation capability and the other capabilities of the product you reduce the risk of trips, meaning less downtime for the provider, as well as extra assistance in improving the reliability of their equipment and, ultimately, the return on their assets," he added.
Akram A Reda, Europe African and Middle East industrial marketing advisor for ExxonMobil Egypt, explained, "What's important on a turbine is to ensure the operation is very smooth and accurate, and there are very minute parts of the machinery which depend on a very smooth flow of oil.
"The technology has evolved over the years and the clearances in the machinery are much tighter than before. As the equipment becomes much more efficient then they're using less oil, and this oil is being exposed to higher temperatures, so the conditions in general are much tougher than before," he noted.
The product was born out of close collaboration with General Electric, who were looking to address gas turbine reliability concerns, explained Cote.
"Working with them, we found that deposit formation caused by certain terminal oils was stopping turbo valves, which have clearances as tight as three microns, from operating as smoothly as they should have been," Cote said.
"We were able to see a very a strong appetite for a problem solving turbine oil that would be able to mitigate deposit formation to a point where turbo valves could operate flawlessly."
Reda said ADIPEC 2012 was the perfect platform from which to launch the product thanks to the high number of infrastructure projects related to the oil and gas sector currently taking place across the Middle East.
"There has been a need for more electricity and energy in this area of the world and there are a lot of power plants being built that encompass the latest equipment being built in this area," he explained.
Cote added that he was pleased to see the emphasis on technology leadership at this year's edition of ADIPEC, as well as the large number of upstream companies exhibiting new products and services, while Reda cited the opportunity to exchange details about new technologies as among the key advantages of being at the show.
