Tribological characterization of Pongamia pinnata oil blended bio-lubricant

ABSTRACTGlobally there is a need to develop a bio-based lubricant which will be biodegradable, nontoxic and environmental friendly. This paper reports the friction and wear characteristics of Pongamia oil contaminated bio-lubricant by using a pin-on-disc tribometer. In this investigation, the Pongamia oil was mixed with the conventional lubricant in the ratios 15, 30 and 50% by volume. During the investigation, sliding velocity was maintained at 3.8 m/s and applied loads were 50, 100 and 150 N. Experimental results showed that the lubrication regime that occurred during the test was boundary lubrication and the wear obtained was abrasive and adhesive in nature. During testing, the lowest wear was found with the 15% Pongamia oil blend; above this contamination, the wear rate increased considerably. With an increase in load, the viscosity of all Pongamia oil blends decreases and all blends meet ISO VG 100 requirement at 40°C except PB 50. The addition of Pongamia oil to the base lubricant resulted in a very...