AXEL News & Blog

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

November 26^th, 2024  

AXEL Royal Tulsa Facility Recovers Swiftly Following Fire Incident

TULSA, OK - AXEL Royal demonstrated exceptional emergency response and operational resilience following a fire at its Tulsa facility. The incident, which occurred at approximately 10:00 AM last Tuesday in the exterior western part of the oil blending unit, was successfully contained and extinguished by 2:00 PM the same day, thanks to the swift action of AXEL team members, the Tulsa Fire Department, and support from Holly Frontier's internal resources.

Background
Our Caliac thickener is made by a reaction process where both lithium hydroxide and either calcium hydroxide or calcium carbonate are allowed to react with fatty acids, usually 12-hydroxy-stearic acid. The ratio between the Li- and the Ca- components can be varied to achieve different properties from the thickener. The flexibility of the thickener system allows tailoring towards high load-carrying capacity and/or extreme water resistance. The Caliac thickener has properties in common with both the lithium thickener and the anhydrous calcium thickener. Typical treat rate for a NLGI 2 grease: 7 - 11 %

Background
Our Alassca thickener can be described as a combination of a lithium complex soap and sarcosylic calcium gel. The well-known lithium complex part forms the backbone of the thickener system and provides increased oil bleed and lubricity, and lowers total thickener content. This is important for successful use at lower temperatures. The attachment of the calcium gel to the lithium complex soap increases surface affinity and, thereby, the efficiency of these active components, providing resistance to extreme pressure, water, and corrosion. The thickener system is durable and contributes to surface separation, which means less reliance on the very high viscosity of the oil phase, in opposition to traditional aluminum complex and inorganic clay thickeners.

At the 2024 NLGI Annual Meeting, AXEL’s Prof. Johan Leckner presented a paper co-authored with Gabriel Calderon-Salmeron and Prof. Sergei Glavatskih of the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. The paper illustrates how friction losses in electrical motor bearings can be accurately measured under a wide range of speed conditions.

AXEL’s Prof. Johan Leckner and Johanna Larsson present a comparative investigation between simple lithium and anhydrous calcium greases: “Can Calcium Limit Lithium ReLiance?”

The main finding is that the performance of anhydrous calcium greases, up to 140°C, is at least equal, if not better, than simple lithium greases.

AXEL will have its own booth and deliver presentations at the ALIA/F&L Asia Lubricant Exhibition in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from September 9 to 11, 2024. As AXEL continues its international expansion, our presence at this event further demonstrates our commitment to serving our global and regional customers in this important region of the world.

Following another successful ELGI AGM with a record attendance exceeding 400 delegates, the ELGI Sustainability Technical Consortium (STC) was invited to gather for an additional day of discussion in the Spanish Capital.

The ELGI STC consists of five Task Forces focused on Communication and Regulation, Product Carbon Footprint (PCF), End User, End-of-Life, and Life Cycle Analysis. It has been established to ensure that all aspects of the grease value chain are duly considered in relation to sustainability.

AXEL’s original Nol, Sweden plant installed its brand new Kettle 55. The main purpose is to increase production capacity and flexibility in our plant! The new kettle can produce intermediate products as well as finished products/greases.   Not only has our overall capacity increased, but also our capacity to produce Lithium alternatives, driven by a surge in demand for our HYCAL (Anhydrous Calcium) technology. The first batch was produced in February.

Klimatlöftet is a project led by the West Swedish Chamber of Commerce in collaboration with Företagarna Västra Götaland. The Climate Promise is a new initiative aimed at small and medium-sized companies in the Västra Götaland county that want to reduce their climate footprint and increase their green competitiveness. Participating companies adopt any number of “climate pledges” in different areas and receive free support from experts and specialists to fulfill their pledges.

We have been around for over 135 years, but nothing is stopping us from reaching out to and attracting new talent. We have swung into "TikTok" mode and are producing short videos with powerful sustainability messages and grease knowledge. These might cover the basics of grease production, testing methods, and how grease impacts our planet.