Biodegradable lubricants have great environmental benefits, but are generally more expensive than other lubricants. Our objective is to make an estolide lubricant in a way that makes the finished product more affordable. Determining the potential benefits of this new pathway will require a comparison of the cost and performance of the product to the other synthetic lubricants in the market. Process variables will be altered at a lab scale to determine their effect on product quality and cost. This cost reduction is anticipated to increase the market penetration of biodegradable lubricants, which may lead to a reduced risk of oil spills to the environment and human health.
