Re-refined business model is based on "closed loop" recycling used motor oils from engine to re-refinery and back to the engine. Once the re-refining process is complete, new chemical additives are blended into the base oil to fortify and bring the oil to the performance standards of the desired lubricant. The re-refining process is similar to those applied to processing virgin crude oil. Used motor oil is a renewable resource and many governmental agencies and companies request re-refined oils into lubricants due to their favorable “green” attributes.
Re-refined base oil meets all technical standards for American Petroleum Institute (API) Group II oils, the fastest growing category of motor oils and is equivalent to the performance standards of base oil produced from crude oil. Extensive laboratory testing and purchasing experiences of the US Postal Services and the State of Maine, Vermont, New York, California, Washington and Massachusetts, among others, how lubricants made from re-refined base oil are virtually indistinguishable and equivalent in appearance and quality to the crude oil counterparts.
Quality
Since the mid-1990s, technological advancements have enabled the industry to produce a higher quality of re-refined base oils at a lower cost. With the development of better additives and production of higher quality base oils, the industry has been able to develop newer and more sophisticated lubricant products. The end result of these advancements can be seen in the superior quality lubricants on the market today and the increasingly stringent standards for the automotive engine oil specifications.
The America petroleum Institute (API) certifies re-refined oil products, which display the API symbol. The International Lubricant Standardization and Approval Committee (ILSAC) and API have both certified that re-refined motor oil is approved for use by all major auto manufacturers including Chrysler, Ford, GM, Honda, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and Volkswagen and can be covered under new vehicle warranties. Each manufacturer has issued a written statement explaining that lubricants produced from re-refined oil will not void warranties.
The economics of re-refining used oil have also changed. New advancements in this technology, as well as the world wide decreasing refining capacity, have made the re-refining process more economically attractive. As a result, the recycling of used oil has improved from simply removing the water, insoluble materials, and dirt required to produce burner fuel, to the more complicated removal of heavy metals, nitrogen, chlorine and oxygenated compounds necessary to produce base oils that can be recycled many times.
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