Making synthetic oil primarily involves chemically modifying materials derived from distilled crude oil, but the exact synthesis process is a proprietary trade secret that varies among manufacturers.
Starting Materials for Synthetic Oil
Synthetic oils are not simply refined crude oil like conventional oils. Instead, they are built from the ground up using specific chemical processes.
The foundational material for synthetic oil production is nearly always distilled crude oil. However, this base material undergoes significant chemical transformation.
- Base Material: Almost always distilled crude oil.
- Primary Constituents: Chemically modified materials, often derived from petroleum components.
These starting materials are processed to create base oils with uniform molecular structures, which perform better and more predictably than the varied molecules found in conventional mineral oil.
The Synthesis Process: A Trade Secret
While the origin of the base materials is known, the specific chemical reactions and techniques used to synthesize the final synthetic oil are highly guarded secrets.
- The actual synthesis process varies significantly from one producer to another.
- Each company's unique method for creating synthetic base oils is considered a trade secret.
This proprietary nature means there is no single, universal step-by-step guide to making synthetic oil. The processes involve complex chemical engineering to build desired hydrocarbon chains or other synthetic molecules, often resulting in Group IV (Polyalphaolefins or PAOs) or Group V (Esters, etc.) base oils according to the API base oil classification system.
Additional additives are also blended with the synthetic base oil to enhance performance characteristics like viscosity index, pour point, oxidation resistance, and detergency. The selection and proportion of these additives also vary widely among different synthetic oil products.
In summary, while synthetic oil begins with distilled crude oil components that are chemically modified, the detailed process of synthesis and the specific additives used are unique to each manufacturer and kept confidential as trade secrets.
