Renewable Lubricants

The GROWMARK System is partnering with Environmental Lubricants Manufacturing, Inc. (ELM), of Waverly, Iowa, to offer products that use the versatility of soybeans to create renewable alternatives to petroleum based products.

The production process is fairly simple. Soybeans are crushed into a commingled oil and meal substance. The oil and meal are then separated. The oil is processed into grease and lubricants, and the meal is used as livestock feed.

ELM was formed to transfer ag-based lubricant technology from the University of Northern Iowa's Ag-Based Industrial Lubricants (ABIL) Research Program. ELM combined the exclusive lubricants technology of UNIABIL with an exclusive DuPont produced very stable, biotechnology based soybean oil. The combination of these two has given ELM the ability to produce soybean oil-based lubricants that meet and exceed the performance of their petroleum counterparts.

Since 1991, ABIL has commercialized 16 lubricants, oils, and greases made from soybean oil, including tractor hydraulic fluid, food-grade hydraulic oil, industrial hydraulic oil, food-grade greases, and metalworking fluids. These products have practical applications, including uses in farm equipment, gears, railroads, transformers, semi trucks, and chainsaws.

These soy-based products have advantages over petroleum-based products. They are biodegradable and far less toxic than traditional products for applications where the products are usually rubbed or washed off. In addition, they have a higher flash point, making them less likely to catch fire.

Available, are soy-based greases, base oils and additives, lubricants, and specialty oils made from U.S. grown soybeans. They include: Bar & Chain Lubricant, Gear Lubricant, SoyTrak™ Rail Curve Grease, Grease 5th Wheel Clay, Heavy Duty General Purpose Truck Grease, Food Grade Hydraulic Oil, OptiBase™ 3000 High Oleic Bean Oil, Industrial Hydraulic Oil, Tractor Hydraulic Fluid, and Metalworking Fluids.