Previously, used engine oils were burned. Now they are often bought at gas stations to be regenerated or used for other purposes.
Regeneration of oils
The recovery of used engine oil includes the removal of acids, colloidal substances, mechanical particles, chemical sludge, bitumen deposits, water condensate, giving the regenerated product an original odor and color. There are many different ways to recover used oil, they all have their pros and cons, so it is impossible to single out any preferred technology.
During the recovery of the oil, solid particles and free “waste” water are removed by mechanical means. After that, the thermophysical phase begins, which includes evaporation and vacuum distillation. Then a physicochemical treatment takes place, which is needed to artificially increase toxin compounds, so that in the future it is easier to filter them out.
During microfiltration, waste oil is passed through a variety of membranes, which differ in performance and thermal stability. The fact is that the used oil becomes more liquid (which means it passes through the membranes more easily) when heated.
The ultimate or ideal goal of regeneration is to obtain an oil that is superior in performance to the original product. This requires more sophisticated and complex multi-stage work involving the use of chemical recovery methods that require very sophisticated equipment. Conventional refined machine oil has properties that allow it to be used in less loaded machines and assemblies.
Creative uses of used oil
But even if you do not deal with the recovery of engine oil, it can be used in many areas. For example, waste oil can be used to protect the lower and poorly protected from rain in the walls of houses made of wood. True, in this case, it is desirable to create a special tar paste with the help of oil and tar. It is quite simple to make it - it is enough to melt tar in a metal vessel and add old oil to it. If it is supposed to use a still warm mass for surface treatment, the volumes of tar and oil should be equal. If processing is carried out with a chilled paste, slightly less oil is added.
With the help of used machine oil, you can quickly and easily clean rollers or brushes from quick-drying enamels or paints. Immersed in waste oil and then wiped off with a rag or paper immediately after use, will quickly remove paint particles from the bristles. After that, it is enough to rinse the brush with warm soapy water to remove oil residues.
