2024 NLGI Annual Meeting Program

Meeting Program Sponsored By:

June 10 – 13, 2024

La Cantera Resort & Spa | San Antonio, TX, USA

PRESIDENT’S WELCOME

Anoop Kumar, Ph. D

Chevron Products Company NLGI President 2022-2024

Dear NLGI members and meeting attendees,

I extend a very warm welcome to the 91st Annual NLGI Meeting at the beautiful La Cantera Resort & Spa, San Antonio, June 10-13, 2024. The grease industry is comparatively small and niche; however, over the years, NLGI has created a unique family environment for those associated with the grease industry. We have already received an overwhelming response with over 400 registered delegates from around the globe, 21 high quality technical presentations, approx 75 participants to our iconic education courses, 30 display tables and a variety of sponsors. Besides providing sources for first-hand information on the technical industry trends in the grease industry, the NLGI annual meeting provides ample opportunities for networking and developing relationships. You can access additional program details throughout this program.

NLGI has been a pioneer in grease since 1933 and continues to provide support and growth to the industry. This year’s theme of this year’s annual meeting is Mobility and Grease – A Continuing Partnership. You will see a variety of topics covered throughout the week, including a fantastic industry speaker presentation from Dr. Wenyang Zhang from Tesla. You won’t want to miss that session! Additionally, back again this year is the annual golf tournament, opening general session and awards ceremony, fun run, spouse/guest program, various networking receptions and NLGI’s renowned closing party. See agenda inside this program for more specifics.

Additionally, NLGI is offering three new events this year including:

1. Manufacturer’s Council breakfast and panel session. If you are a grease manufacturer or curious about what’s going on with HPM, GC-LB or NLGI’s Grease Production Survey, please plan to join this session on Wednesday, June 12 from 7:00am-8:30am in the La Cantera ballroom.

2. Technical Symposium on Wednesday, June 12 from 3:15pm-4:45pm in the La Cantera ballroom for a 1.5-hour Technical Symposium focusing on updates from working groups as well as ad hoc committee work related to key industry tests and specifications, including HPM and GC-LB. Updates will include HPM certification testing requirements as well as work on future HPM certification requirements. Additionally, updates will be provided from both North America and Europe on the ELGI/NLGI joint working groups (i.e. Food Grade, Bio-Based and Grease Particle). *Please note: The Technical Symposium has taken the place of separate working group meetings at the annual meeting. Working Groups still exist, and each group is working virtually throughout the year to accomplish initiatives. If interested in joining any working group, please contact nlgi@nlgi.org

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PRESIDENT’S WELCOME continued..

3. Women in Grease Interest Network panel session taking place on Thursday, June 13 from 8:45am-9:45am in the La Cantera ballroom (immediately following breakfast). The session titled “Diverse Journeys, Unified Impact: Personal Pathways to Success Within the Grease Industry” includes four panelists with over 100 years in the industry and will provide an open dialog on their professional and personal experiences. They will highlight the significance of those experiences and share insights that can positively impact the audience. We invite you to hear their diverse journeys and advice on personal pathways to success.

If you haven’t already, we highly recommend you download the Whova app. The Whova app will serve as a direct way to message all attendees of any updates to meeting rooms, safety protocols, etc. Additionally, the Whova app allows attendees to connect and network with one another throughout the week. It also includes a real-time schedule. Instructions on how to download the app are available on your program materials. If you need additional assistance, please visit the registration desk.

My two years term as President has truly been an honor and a very rewarding and learning experience for me. I take this opportunity to express my tremendous appreciation and thanks to the Executive Committee, Board of Directors and NLGI Staff for their guidance and support without that it would have been rather impossible to do exercise my duties and responsibilities. At last, but defiantly not the least I thank our generous sponsors, and featured display tables and attendees for their continued support. Welcome to the beautiful city of San Antonio and we hope you have a productive and informative NLGI meeting.

Anoop Kumar NLGI President, 2022 - 2024

THE VISION OF NLGI

To be recognized as the premier source of support to consumers, researchers, manufacturers, suppliers, marketers and other key stakeholders of the worldwide lubricating grease industry.

NLGI’S MISSION

To provide resources relevant to the needs of the global grease community.

ANTI-TRUST STATEMENT

As participants in this meeting, we must refrain from activities prohibited by existing antitrust laws. Discussions of agreements that may restrain competition, the exchange of information concerning prices, rates, coverages, market practices, or any other competitive aspect of a company’s operation are strictly prohibited.

PLATINUM SPONSORS

GOLD SPONSORS

SILVER SPONSORS

AXEL Americas, LLC

FedChem

Lubrication Engineers

TotalEnergies Lubrifiants

TRCC

BRONZE SPONSORS

CITGO Lubricants

FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Grease Technology Solutions LLC

King Industries, Inc.

Koehler Instrument Company, Inc.

Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Molykote by DuPont

Novel Reliable Technologies

Texas Refinery Corp

NEW EVENTS AT THE NLGI ANNUAL MEETING

Manufacturers’ Council Breakfast

WEDNESAY, JUNE 12

7 AM - 8:30 AM

La Cantera Ballroom

A Panel Session for grease manufacturers and interested parties. Topics include HPM, GC-LB, the Grease Production Survey, and more.

Technical Symposium

WEDNESAY, JUNE 12

3:15 PM - 4:45 PM

La Cantera Ballroom

The Technical Symposium will will focus on updates from working groups as well as ad hoc committee work related to key industry tests and specifications, including HPM and GC-LB. Updates will include HPM certification testing requirements as well as work on future HPM certification requirements. Additionally, updates will be provided from both North America and Europe on the ELGI/NLGI joint working groups (i.e. Food Grade, Bio-Based and Grease Particle).

WIGIN Industry Panel

THURSDAY, JUNE 13

8:45 AM – 9:45 AM

La Cantera Ballroom

Please join the Women in Grease Interest Network for our first Industry Panel at the upcoming NLGI Annual Meeting for the session titled “Diverse Journeys, Unified Impact: Personal Pathways to Success Within the Grease Industry. All are welcome to attend!

Learn more: https://www.nlgi.org/wigin-panel-discussion/

OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES

FUN RUN

The NLGI Annual Fun Run will be held on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Check-in and stretching will begin at 6:15 AM followed by a standing start at 6:45 AM. Participants are required to sign a waiver to participate. NLGI will offer both a 1-mile and a 2-mile option. Although all attendees and guests are welcome to join us for this complimentary event, pre-registration is required to participate. All participants receive a complimentary T-shirt. Prizes are awarded for first through third place.

GOLF EVENT

Golf during the NLGI 91st Annual Meeting will take place at the La Cantera Resort Golf Course on Monday, June 10, 2024. The 7,001-yard par 72 golf course features five sets of tees on each hole to accommodate every skill level. With breathtaking views of San Antonio Hill Country, this well-renowned course has been home to the PGA and Texas Open.

There will be a shotgun start at 8:00 AM. Check-in will be at 6:00 AM. Breakfast will be provided for all golfers at the La Cantera Golf Club. After the tournament, we will have a 19th Hole Celebration and will award the top three foursomes. We will also have individual prizes for hole contests along the course (longest drive, closest to the pin, etc.)

All registered attendees, including spouses and guests, are welcome to register and participate! For more information about the La Cantera Golf Course, click here.

SPOUSE/GUEST ACTIVITY • Pharm Table Tour & Sip

Wednesday, June 12, 9:15 AM – 12:30 PM

$129 USD / per person

Busses will depart at 9:15 AM to get to the restaurant by 10:00 AM. All participants will need to meet in the lobby at 9:00 AM.

Embark on a morning of refined indulgence with our exclusive Spouse / Guest Experience at Pharm Table. Led by the charismatic Nathan White, Pharm Table’s Beverage Director, this wine-tasting experience celebrates exquisite wines from female-led wineries.

Journey through the Pharm Table’s philosophy, where botanical cocktails and natural wines take center stage. Begin your day with four carefully curated wines, each telling a unique story of passion and craftsmanship. Nathan will unveil the artistry behind these exceptional bottles.

While Pharm Table’s globally-inspired food remains a delightful accompaniment, this morning affair focuses on the symphony of flavors within each pour. Revel in the antiinflammatory approach, where the protagonist is the wine itself, and the experience is a toast to the wellness of both body and soul.

This experience at Pharm Table promises a morning of sophistication, connection, and the pleasure of discovering extraordinary wines. Join us for an exclusive event where the elixir of the vine takes center stage in a setting that transcends the ordinary.

FUN RUN MAP

Closing Party at the La Cantera Golf Club Driving Range

JUNE 13 6:00 PM - 9:00 PM

We are thrilled to invite you to NLGI’s unforgettable closing party at The La Cantera Golf Club Driving Range.

Join us for a perfect opportunity to unwind, relax and connect with colleagues and friends in a beautiful, laid-back setting. The theme of this year’s closing party is Honky-Tonk. Join us for dinner, followed by various games and entertainment, including the famous Cactus Country band. Honky Tonk attire is encouraged!

This event is a casual closing party and jeans/shorts/sundresses are acceptable. Please note, this event will be outdoors. NLGI will provide some shade; however, please plan on the Texas heat.

We can’t wait to see you there for a memorable night of fun and camaraderie!

Industry Speaker Session

Tesla’s State-of-the-Art Approaches for Greases and Fluids in Electric Vehicles (EVs)

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12

8:45 am – 9:45 am | La Cantera Ballroom

Sponsored by:

Additional Insights:

Details Highlights:

• Tesla’s system design approach to EV lubricants

• Integration of designed lubricants as part of the hardware

• Strategies to extend the past success of EV greases

• Importance of partnerships among OEMs, tier-1s, and the grease industry for developing next-gen high-performance EV grease products

• Outline of the future vision for the industry

• Challenges facing the industry in advancing EV lubricant technology

Dr. Zhang currently leads the lubricant and tribology team for Tesla, and is responsible for fluid engineering (lubricant design, selection, specs development, etc.), tribology, and lubricant related subjects for all current and future Tesla platforms. He is also responsible for determination of key lubrication parameters and designs, and involved in subjects related to cooling and lubrication designs of Tesla drive units. During Dr. Zhang’s Tesla tenure, by development of the next gen fluid along with advanced cooling and lubrication design, efficiency, durability, and continuous power of vehicles are improved.

In addition, he leads and have lead engineering solutions to address multiple key challenges during recent programs launches (Model S/X refresh, 4th generation powertrain of Model 3/Y, Cybertruck, etc.)

His contributions to the field have been recognized with multiple awards, and he actively contributes to the academic community as an associate editor of the ASME Journal of Tribology. Dr. Zhang holds the titles of Certified Lubrication Specialist (CLS) from the Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers, and Certified Lubricating Grease Specialist (CLGS) from the National Lubricating Grease Institute.

Dr. Zhang’s academic background includes a B.Sc. in Materials Science and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, underscoring his deep and broad expertise in the field.

2024 NLGI ANNUAL MEETING

MONDAY, JUNE 10, 2024

7:00 AM - 1:30 PM Golf Tournament La Cantera Golf Club *on property *7:00 AM Check-In, Breakfast provided for all golfers, Shotgun start at 8:00 AM

8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Basic Lubricating Grease Course Day 1 San Augustine

8:00 AM - 5:00 PM Advanced Lubricating Grease Course Day 1 ......................................................................................... San Xavier

10:00 AM - 3:00 PM Display Table Set-up San Antonio Grand Ballroom

1:00 PM - 5:30 PM Registration Open....................................................................................................... San Antonio Grand Ballroom

2:30 PM - 4:30 PM Board of Directors Meeting San Juan Meeting Room

3:00 PM - 6:00 PM Display Table Open .................................................................................................... San Antonio Grand Ballroom

4:45 PM - 5:45 PM New Member/First-Timer Reception *by invitation only

5:45 PM - 6:45 PM Welcome Reception ....................................................................................................................... Plaza San Saba

TUESDAY, JUNE 11, 2024

7:00 AM - 5:00 PM Registration Open San Antonio Grand Ballroom

7:00 AM - 5:00 PM Display Tables Open San Antonio Grand Ballroom

7:00 AM - 8:00 AM Networking Breakfast San Antonio Grand Ballroom

8:00 AM - 9:15 AM General Session & Awards Ceremony La Cantera Ballroom

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM Technical Sessions Day 1 La Cantera Ballroom

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM Basic Lubricating Grease Course Day 2 San Augustine

9:30 AM - 5:00 PM Advanced Lubricating Grease Course Day 2 San Xavier

11:45 AM - 1:00 PM Networking Lunch San Antonio Grand Ballroom

2:15 PM - 3:00 PM PM Refreshment Break San Antonio Grand Ballroom

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM Networking Reception San Antonio Ballroom Terrace North

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12, 2024

6:00 AM - 5:00 PM Registration Open San Antonio Grand Ballroom

6:00 AM - 5:00 PM Display Tables Open San Antonio Grand Ballroom 6:15 AM - 7:30 AM Fun Run San Antonio Ballroom Driveway Check-In/Stretching begins at 6:15 AM

7:00 AM - 8:30 AM Networking Breakfast San Antonio Grand Ballroom

7:00 AM - 8:30 AM Manufacturers’ Council Breakfast ............................................................................................ La Cantera Ballroom

8:45 AM - 9:45 AM Industry Speaker La Cantera Ballroom

10:00 AM - 3:00 PM Technical Sessions Day 2........................................................................................................ La Cantera Ballroom

9:15 AM - 12:30 PM Spouse/Guest Activity Meet in Lobby at 9:00 AM 11:45 AM - 1:00 PM Networking Lunch ....................................................................................................... San Antonio Grand Ballroom

2:15 PM - 2:30 PM PM Refreshment Break San Antonio Grand Ballroom 3:15 PM - 4:45 PM Technical Symposium .............................................................................................................. La Cantera Ballroom

THURSDAY, JUNE 13, 2024

7:00 AM - 2:00 PM Registration Open San Antonio Grand Ballroom

7:00 AM - 2:00 PM Display Tables Open San Antonio Grand Ballroom

7:00 AM - 8:30 AM Networking Breakfast San Antonio Grand Ballroom

7:00 AM - 8:30 AM Board of Directors Meeting San Juan Meeting Room

8:45 AM - 9:45 AM Women in Grease Interest Network Industry Panel La Cantera Ballroom

10:15 AM - 5:00 PM Technical Sessions Day 3 La Cantera Ballroom 11:45 AM - 12:45 PM Networking Lunch San Antonio Grand Ballroom

2:00 PM - 4:00 PM CLGS Exam San Lorenzo

2:00 PM - 5:00 PM Display Table Teardown San Antonio Grand Ballroom

2:15 PM - 2:30 PM PM Refreshment Break San Antonio Grand Ballroom

6:00 PM - 9:00 PM Casual Closing Party La Cantera Golf Club Driving Range

GREASE EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Basic Lubricating Grease Course

With more than 1200 alumni, NLGI’s Basic Lubricating Grease Course is the world’s foremost foundational training class for the global grease industry. This course provides an excellent overview of the types of greases, thickeners, base oils and additives. The methods of manufacturing, testing methodology and their use in bearings and in industrial and automotive applications are also covered. Topics include the following:

• Basic Grease Course Overview & Introduction to Greases

• Base Oils

• Performance Additives

• Grease Manufacturing

• Grease Packages and Dispensing

Advanced Lubricating Grease Course

• Grease Testing

• Grease Selection and Recommendations

• Industrial Applications

• Automotive Applications

• Trouble Shooting

This course provides advanced instruction regarding specific types of greases, grease chemistry and specialized applications. There is an increased focus on high-value specialty greases and their manufacture and use. Topics include the following:

• Advanced thickeners – lithium complex, aluminum complex, calcium sulfonate complex and polyurea

• Specialized raw materials – polymers, synthetic base stocks, solid additives

• Applications – tribology, advanced grease lubrication, advanced grease tests

• Incidental food contact greases

Certified Lubricating Grease Specialist (CLGS)

A standard that certifies that an individual possesses a defined level of expertise in the field of lubricating grease. Certification indicates that NLGI recognizes the individual as a grease expert. Certification is awarded after an individual passes a two-hour exam that consists of 120 questions about lubrication fundamentals and grease types, selection, manufacturing, applications, maintenance, testing, etc.

Exam Information

This certification is only offered during the NLGI Annual Meeting (once per year).

• The 2024 CLGS Exam will be on Thursday, June 13th at 2:00 p.m.

• Please view our Annual Meeting registration/pricing information for more details.

• Recommended Study Materials

• Location: San Lorenzo

Maintaining Certification

• Renews every 3 years

• Renewal fee $150 USD

• Renewal criteria

Certification is an indicator that the individual possesses a high level of expertise in the field of grease. NLGI recognizes CLGS certified individuals as grease industry experts. CLGS certification will serve as a useful tool for employers to screen potential employees and for OEMs and end users to ensure that consultants and suppliers are qualified to make grease related recommendations.

Click Here to See All CLGS Holders.

ABSTRACTS & BIOS

TUESDAY, JUNE 11

Technical Sessions - Day 1 • 9:30 AM - 5:00 PM Time

9:30 AM - 10:10 AM 2405 J. Andrew Waynick

Johan Leckner

10:15 AM - 10:55 AM 2414

11:00 AM - 11:40 AM 2415

AXEL

Calcium-Magnesium Sulfonate Complex Greases: The Two Polar Opposites of Rheology

Christiernsson International AB Towards More Sustainable Grease Lubrication: Measuring and Understanding Friction Losses in Grease-lubricated Electric Motor Bearings

Gabriel Calderon Salmeron KTH Royal Institute of Technology

Sergei Glavatskih

Jacob Bonta

Valvoline Global Operations Characterizing Lubricating Grease Thixotropy at Different Recovery Strains

11:45 AM - 1:00 PM Networking Lunch

1:00 PM - 1:40 PM 2410

1:45 PM - 2:25 PM 2411

2:30 PM - 3:10 PM 2404

Erik Willett Functional Products Inc.

Eric Sirianni

Jonathan Davis

Ethel Garnier

3:15 PM - 3:55 PM 2409

4:00 PM - 4:40 PM 2403

INVISTA

Paul Bessette Triboscience & Engineering, Inc.

Dwaine Morris Shell Global Solutions

Pelle Porsgaard

Jesse Allan

Wayne Mackwood LANXESS Canada Co./Cie

Jeremy Brideau

Ross Dworet

Nataly Tovar Cantor LANXESS Corporation

Sarah Korwek

Jack Janik

Sudip Saha

Robert Jackson

German Mills

Auburn University

Viscosity Modifiers Versus the Lubrication of Bearing Greases with Re-Refined Base Oil

Polyamides: A Novel Alternative Grease Thickener

Sustainability Impact of Grease Selection in Industrial Applications

Commercial Presentation Soup to Nuts. The Re-development of LANXESS NSF H1 Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease

2023 Research Grant Report

Electrically Conductive Nanoparticle Additives for Greases Used in Electric Vehicles and Other Applications

Tuesday, June 11

Calcium-Magnesium Sulfonate Complex Greases: The Two Polar Opposites of Rheology

During the past eight years, a new lubricating grease thickener category has been developed: calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex. During the past five years, various aspects of this new thickener category have been covered by six U.S. Patents and numerous patents issued in other countries. That makes this new thickener category one of the most patented new developments in lubricating grease chemistry in at least the last 50 years. One reason for this is the fact that calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex greases are not just one thickener type when evaluated by the properties imparted to the overall grease.

This paper evaluates two of the many types of calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex greases based on the rheological properties imparted by the thickener system. One type of calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex grease provides extreme rheopecticity in its unmilled state relative to its milled state. Unmilled grease is either a Newtonian fluid or nearly so, with little or no discernable grease structure. Yet when milled, the fluid becomes a very stable NLGI No. 2 grease with standard test properties rivaling or exceeding prior art calcium sulfonate complex greases. The other type of calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex grease provides optimum dispersion of the thickener and grease structure without any milling. In fact, milling such calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex greases provides no further significant dispersion of the thickener or improvement in grease structure, even when evaluated by oscillatory rheometry. Thickener yield for such greases can be extremely high, resulting in a formulation cost significantly lower than previously documented calcium sulfonate complex greases. These two types of calcium-magnesium sulfonate complex grease represent two polar opposites of rheology. Examples of both types are provided, and an analysis of spectral and rheological properties provides insight into why they behave the way they do.

J. Andrew Waynick received his B.A. in Chemistry in 1974 from Central Methodist College, and his M.S. in Physical Chemistry in 1977 from Purdue University. For the 46 years since then, Andy has been a professional research chemist. Andy has 43 U.S. Patents and more than 40 published research papers. Andy has received the Clarence E. Earle Memorial Award, the NLGI Fellows Award, the NLGI Author Award for Application, the NLGI Author Award for Development, the NLGI Golden Grease Gun Award, and the NLGI Award for Achievement. Andy was a contributing author of the NLGI Lubricating Grease Guide, 7th Edition. Andy retired from full-time work on October 1, 2022. In December 2022, Andy assumed the responsibilities of Technical Editor for the NLGI Spokesman.

Tuesday, June 11

Towards More Sustainable Grease Lubrication: Measuring and Understanding Friction Losses in Grease-lubricated Electric Motor Bearings

Friction losses in grease-lubricated contacts accumulate to substantial levels on a global scale. Estimates indicate that around 16% of all losses in tribological contacts originate from grease-lubricated contacts and that the plausible short-term savings correspond to one percent of the global carbon dioxide emissions. Despite this significant impact, the understanding of factors that control friction losses in grease-lubricated systems under normal operating conditions is very limited. To make grease lubrication more sustainable, it is therefore imperative to increase our grease lubrication knowledge, but to achieve this, accurate and reliable methods for measuring friction losses need to be developed.

This paper presents the results of several ball bearing grease-efficiency tests using different methodologies. Grease parameters, such as the influence of different thickeners and oil types, are screened by measuring friction losses under speed conditions typical of an electric motor. The effect of performing tests at constant versus variable speed is also investigated. The learning from these tests and the implications for future testing are discussed. The authors also show how subtle changes in parameters can greatly affect the friction losses in grease-lubricated electric motor bearings.

To provide a comprehensive perspective of the importance of the presented grease-efficiency tests, the authors combine the measured friction losses with the grease and bearing carbon footprint. This analysis is performed for two different systems: An industrial electric motor and the motor of an electric vehicle. The analysis provides an understanding of the high importance of reducing friction losses in a cradle-to-grave perspective.

Johan Leckner has an MS and PhD in chemical engineering from Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden. He worked for six years as a researcher, first at the Pasteur Institute in Paris and then at Chalmers University of Technology. In 2009, he joined Axel Christiernsson International as Senior Development engineer and since 2016 he is working as Group Technical Manager. Since 2021, Johan is also part-time Professor in Lubricant Design at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.

Gabriel Calderon Salmeron is currently a Ph.D. candidate at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden. His research focuses on the lubrication of electric machinery, with special focus on the performance of lubricating greases for these applications. He received a Bachelor ’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Army Forces ESPE in Ecuador and a Master of Science degree from KTH. He has several years of work experience in engineering design, machine design, and maintenance projects in the textile and construction industry.

Professor Glavatskih heads the division of system and component design at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He has more than 30 years of academic experience in the field of machine elements, tribology and cryogenics. The overall goal of his research is to provide energy efficient and environmentally friendly solutions for machine components and tribological interfaces. Consequently, he considers a lubricant as a machine element/component that should be designed similar to other traditional machine elements. His research also includes tribochemistry to explore novel ways of controlling tribological interfaces. He is a visiting Professor at Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium and a visiting Professorial Fellow at the School of Chemistry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.

Tuesday, June 11

Characterizing Lubricating Grease Thixotropy at Different Recovery Strains

In this study, the thixotropic recovery of lubricating greases under varied strain and temperature is examined using a parallel plate rheometer. Mechanical degradation and subsequent structural recovery are properties associated with the grease microstructures when exposed to cycles of shear and rest. The conditions of the rest cycle have significant impacts on the rate and extent of recovery. Three grease thickeners are considered: lithium 12-hydroxystearate, fumed silica, and polyurea. Small amplitude oscillatory (SAOS) testing is first used to evaluate the moduli in an undisturbed state. A 1-hour shear program is applied to each material, after which the storage modulus is tracked over time in SAOS evaluation. Varied conditions of recovery are explored by varying the % strain and temperature applied during the recovery phase. The recovery profiles compare the differences in rate and magnitude microstructural recovery. These results show that rheological analysis may provide insights not observed in standard industrial testing that may inform the ultimate utility of different thickeners used in field applications.

Jacob Bonta has 10 years of experience in designing and testing new chemical products for various industrial sectors. Hired by Valvoline in 2018, he leads lubricating grease research and development in North America and supports grease related operations for Valvoline globally. His graduate research is focused on lubricating grease fundamental material properties. He has multiple patents issued or pending for chemical products with four being specific to lubricating greases. He is a member of SAE, STLE, and NLGI and holds the NLGI CLGS certification.

Tuesday, June 11

Viscosity Modifiers Versus Bearing Torque in Greases with Re-Refined Oil

Re-refined base oils (RRBO) are an opportunity for a sustainable, circular economy of base oil. Most re-refineries are limited to ISO 15 to 46 which is much lower than the typical ISO 220 - 460 for many greases. Viscosity modifiers can build up RRBO to proper ISO VGs but how does this affect its rheology and load carrying properties?

Last year, viscosity modifiers were used to turn ISO 25 RRBO into ISO 220 base oil blends for NLGI HPM-HL multipurpose EP greases. For a certain range of molecular weights, the polymer-modified greases performed as well as the control grease using Group I oil.

This year’s study focuses on the effect of this ‘RRBO and polymer’ strategy on bearing grease. The design and selection of bearings and bearing grease are dependent on knowing an ideal viscosity and viscosity ratio, kappa. These parameters will be influenced by the added effects of higher viscosity index and viscoelasticity. Industrial fluid specifications like ASTM D6158 or AGMA 9005 have already been updated to account for the influence of high VI formulations in lubricant selection, but grease knowledge remains based primarily on VI 80-100 Group I oils.

The effects of VI and viscoelasticity from viscosity modifiers will be studied for sustainable bearing greases made using RRBO prepared at ISO 100 with polymer. Bearing torque on 6204 deep groove ball bearings will be measured and compared to apparent viscosity measurements in a Brookfield CAP 2000 cone/plate instrument for both the formulated greases and base oil blends. The goal is to determine under what limits polymers can affect the standard conventions for bearing grease selection.

Erik Willett is president of Functional Products Inc., an Ohio-based lubricant additive company. Dr. Willett has earned a Doctorate in Polymer Science from the University of Akron. He has received NLGI’s Development Author Award, Educational Excellence Award, and the NLGI-IC’s PCC Gonsalves Memorial Award for educational and technical contributions to grease. He also serves as a 2024 TLT Magazine technical editor and a technical reviewer for NLGI.

2411

Tuesday, June 11

Polyamides: A Novel Alternative Grease Thickener

Since their introduction in the 1950s, attempts have been made to utilize polyamides as grease thickeners. Incorporation of traditional nylon material into base oils was unsuccessful due to material compatibility. An in-situ manufacturing process involving capping polyamide with monoacids was capable of generating efficient thickeners (although used at higher loading), but the procedure was not efficient. Ultimately, this technology was not competitive.

In the ensuing decades, little advancements were made to advance this technology further. INVISTA, a global leader in polyamide technology, has recently revisited and developed a new pre-formed polyamide-based grease thickener, which provides a highperformance alternative to metal soaps and polyurea thickeners. This innovative technology produces NLGI-2 greases at lower loading of pre-formed thickener in a variety of base oils (tested, Groups III-V). The resulting greases demonstrate high performance properties and outstanding thermo-oxidative stability within a wide range of base oils. Additionally, the use of a preformed thickener may benefit grease manufacturers by offering reliability and consistency from batch-to-batch while decreasing batch manufacturing time.

The novel polyamide grease thickener technology could offer a cost-competitive and flexible platform by tailoring the polymer to meet a variety of market needs. This paper will highlight the benefits and attributes of a polyamide-based grease thickener as a novel alternative to incumbents.

Eric R. Sirianni, Ph.D. is a Senior R&D Scientist at INVISTA serving as the technical lead for new business development programs within INVISTA’s Nylon Intermediates R&D group. Leveraging his expertise in small molecule synthesis, he has led multiple high-profile programs involving the development of new chemistries utilizing INVISTA Nylon intermediates.

Prior to joining INVISTA, Eric earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of Delaware, where he focused on organometallic and inorganic chemistry, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from the University of South Carolina.

Jonathan Davis, M.Sc. is the New Business Development Technical Leader and R&D Scientist at INVISTA serving as a lead scientist in the development and optimization of new products. He possesses a diverse background in research and networking that has served him well within the INVISTA team. Before joining INVISTA, Jonathan earned his M.Sc. in Marine Science from the University of Auckland in New Zealand where he studied the behavior and ecology of elasmobranchs, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Texas.

Ethel Garnier is INVISTA Upstream New Business Development Director. She specializes in the identification of new disruptive trends in the industries that INVISTA serves and leading the New Business Development capability for INVISTA’s Upstream business. She is an expert in the field of new technologies, supporting her organization on how to achieve efficient, effective, and sustainable innovation and business change using innovation processes and economic thinking. Ethel is a respected thought leader on Innovation Management and New Product Development.

Ethel has a background in Research and Development, holding a PhD in Organic Chemistry from the University of Orleans (France). She has worked as a Principal Investigator in a variety of industries, e.g., military, pharmaceutical, fertilizer, and nylon. However, for the last 10 years, she’s worked as a leader in new product development, innovation management, technology scouting and business development.

Paul A. Bessette is the current President of Triboscience & Engineering, Inc. He has been involved with synthetic lubricants for over forty years, of which twenty-five years at Nye Lubricants and three years at Ciba-Geigy. Established in 2000, TS&E provides consulting services and ability to manufacture lubricants for both domestic and foreign customers with an emphasis on perfluorinated polyethers.

Paul was Vice Chairman of NLGI Grease Education Course for ten years and was honored with the NLGI Fellows Award, Meritorious Service Award, Achievement Award, Clarence E. Earle Memorial Award and Author’s Award. He was also Associate Editor for Tribology, Transaction, Journal of Synthetic Lubricants and peer review for NLGI. He is a member of NLGI, and former member of STLE and ASTM.

Paul earned a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Lowell Technological Institute. His graduate work included polymer chemistry at Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute. He also has an MBA from University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth. Course work in tribology at MIT.

Tuesday, June 11

Sustainability Impact of Grease Selection in Industrial Applications

For oil lubricated components, sustainability can be impacted by frictional properties resulting from viscometrics, performance additives, base oil selection, oil life and oil drain interval extension. Time-based oil change intervals are becoming a thing of the past, substituted by condition-based oil changes as OEMs race to offer sustainability advantages for their customers. Engine and vehicle OEMs are recognizing that reducing viscosity can have a positive impact on fuel economy without major adverse impacts on durability allowing them to meet regulatory requirements. Besides reduced viscosity, there has been a recognition of the impact of base oil selection on efficiency in many applications. End-users have embraced sustainability as a goal but are reluctant to compromise on reliability or product cost. The total cost of ownership for a component or asset over its lifetime includes the component costs as well as the cost of maintenance, monitoring and disposal. The total cost of operation also includes energy considerations. All of these come with an associated ‘carbon cost’. Similarly, grease life; viscosity and base oil selection impact sustainability in greased bearings. The carbon cost is often driven by the energy footprint of the production of the bearing steel and manufacturing of the bearing. However, grease selection can have a significant impact on the operational carbon cost for the equipment and end user. This paper gives an overview of these concepts and examine specific applications where grease selection can exert significant sustainability benefits for the end-user through efficiency gains, component protection and service costs.

Greg Morris is the Americas Product Application Specialist Team Lead and Grease PAS. In his role as Team Lead, he coordinates with the Product Application Specialists across all sectors, including Fleets.

Greg’s industrial experience spans nearly 30 years as an analytical chemist, plant laboratory supervisor, and commercial sales. Greg serves on the National Lubricating Grease Institute (NLGI) Board of Directors as Shell’s representative to that industry body, working on their technical committee and serving as the research grant liaison.

Greg holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from West Virginia University and applied those skills in acid mine drainage remediation, pharmaceutical research, potable water disinfection, by-product method development, analysis, and monitoring.

Pelle Porsgaard was born in Gothenburg, Sweden and holds a BSc. in Chemical Engineering from Ascheberg. He has extensive experience across many industrial sectors in grease formulation, manufacturing, and applications.He did an internship at Volvo Car R&D Laboratory, conducting a study on thermal degradation of wheel hub bearing greases subject to artificial aging, after which he accepted a position as Laboratory Engineer at grease manufacturer AXEL Christiernsson in 1986 and from 1988 and onward as Product Technician. In his role as Product Technician, he managed technical relationships with OEMs and key industrial development partners. He formulated products, developed lithium-calcium complex grease thickener technology, managed technical documentation and provided grease application engineering sales support.

Pelle joined Shell in 1998 as Grease Business Development Manager. for the Nordic countries and later to include UK and Ireland. He served as a member of Shell’s Technical Support Expert Team from 2000 – 2006. In 2006 he accepted the position as Grease Business Development Manager for Shell Lubricants US. He served as Grease Technical Expert for US and Canada from 2018 to 2022, after which he accepted the position as Americas Grease Product Application Specialist Heavy Industry.

Tuesday, June 11

Commercial Presentation

Soup to Nuts - The Re-development of LANXESS NSF H1 Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease

A little over 40 years ago LANXESS (then Witco) introduced the first Calcium Sulfonate Complex (CSC) grease to the global market. A little over 20 years ago, LANXESS (then Chemtura) introduced the first NSF H1 Incidental Food Contact-approved CSC grease. Since that time, CSC grease in general has experienced near double digit production growth year over year. Likewise, H1 CSC grease has grown rapidly, taking a larger share of food grade grease applications. The reasons are simple – the technology outperforms most other thickener types, particularly where it is wet, hot or endures high loads. In addition, CSC grease now offers a more secure production and regulatory outlook versus lithium-based technology. In the food equipment lubrication space, product performance and risk management are of primary concern. CSC grease, when formulated for incidental food contact, is an ideal choice to ensure equipment is well maintained and operates at peak efficiency. Over the past 20 years, LANXESS has developed numerous H1 formulations covering a wide range of operating performance. Recent regulatory changes to several key components has forced a re-examination of these formulations. LANXESS Application Technology performed a deep-dive technical study on what makes an ideal H1 CSC grease. The outcome – A new, high performance H1-approved overbased Calcium sulfonate has been developed from scratch, the grease process itself was reviewed and optimized, and the performance additive package was updated. When these factors are combined into a re-developed grease, they show equivalent or better core performance, improved low temperature properties and significantly improved oxidation life. This paper will review H1 grease requirements, some of the recent changes in the regulatory landscape and walk through the re-development of the technology from sulfonate to packaged grease.

Wayne Mackwood is currently the Global Head of Detergent and Grease Technology for LANXESS, leading a highly skilled, dynamic and dedicated team of chemists at its West Hill, Canada Application Technology Centre. He is a recognized expert in the design, manufacture and use of Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease and has developed over 150 grease formulations for use in a broad range of applications. He is also active in the development and introduction of new detergent technology and formulations for lubrication, corrosion inhibition, and grease manufacture. Wayne has spent the majority of his 30-year career as a Scientist but has also held roles in marketing and asset management. He has authored more than a dozen technical papers, contributed to numerous journal articles, holds two patents, and has given more than 20 presentations at leading conferences and seminars around the world. He has a Masters in Materials Engineering Science, with a focus on Tribology, from the University of Western Ontario. Wayne has been a member of the NLGI Board since 2011 and is currently serving on the Executive Committee as Vice President. He also served on the STLE Board of Directors from 2008 - 2011 and remains active at the local section level. He been awarded the NLGI John A. Bellanti Sr. Memorial Award in 2019, the NLGI Golden Grease Gun in 2021, the NLGI Award for Educational Excellence in 2022, and the NLGI Fellows Award in 2023. In November 2023, he was awarded the LANXESS Robert W. Brown award for his technical contributions over his career at LANXESS.

Jesse Allan is currently an R&D Chemist for LANXESS, working as a key member of the Grease and Detergent Technology team West Hill, Canada, Application Technology Centre. Although he has only been in the industry for the last six years, Jesse has assisted in developing over 40 Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease formulations that have found uses in a wide range of applications, including both food-grade and industrial settings. He actively collaborates with chemists, both in the lab and on-site, to introduce new chemistries to the grease, such as antioxidants, corrosion inhibition, and extreme pressure additives. Jesse works closely with plant engineers to ensure the grease is manufactured to the highest quality standards and assists in troubleshooting when required. Additionally, he has delivered presentations on new developments in Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease, both internally at LANXESS and externally with customers, participating in public seminars and conferences. Jesse has also increased his involvement in the industry by serving on the STLE Toronto Board, volunteering at NLGI, and attending local chapter seminars and presentations whenever they are available

ABSTRACTS & BIOS

Jeremy Brideau is a research chemist with an advanced diploma from Seneca College in Toronto. He has 9 years of experience in the petroleum industry, 8 of which are from his current role at LANXESS Canada. While at LANXESS he has studied sulfonates, salicylates, and calcium sulfonate complex grease. He has become an expert in test methodology and product characterization. His work on CSC grease lead to the development of several new grease formulations and the improvement of several others. Currently he is focused on sulfonate detergents and has become the resident expert in sulfonation chemistry at the West Hill production site in Canada. Jeremy is active in ASTM D02 committees and more recently with the STLE Toronto section, joining its local board of directors for 2024-25.

Nataly Tovar Cantor has been working as an intern for nearly a year at Lanxess Canada Co./CIE, a global leader in specialty chemicals, within the Application Technology Center in West Hill, Canada. She currently works alongside a team of highly accomplished and professional chemists. As a member of the Grease Technology Team, she has studied grease fundamentals, helped develop several new products, and has run numerous grease tests in support of on-going business, all specifically focused on Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease. She earned her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the Universidad de América in Colombia. Furthermore, she has showcased her dedication to advancing the field by successfully completing a published thesis on the extraction of bioethanol for the generation of biofuels. With a profound interest in becoming more involved in chemical research and development, she is currently enrolled in the Chemical Laboratory Technology –Pharmaceutical program at Seneca College.

Ross Dworet is the Global Product Manager, Detergents for LANXESS, as a senior member of the Transportation Additives segment in the Lubricant Additives Business Unit. He is based in Shelton, Connecticut, having been the previous Global Product Manager for Grease (CSC grease). In addition to presenting at STLE, he has published multiple commercial papers in lubricant industry as well as served as a previous Technical Editor for TLT. Ross has been active in the lubricant additives industry for over 10 years in various operations, technical, and commercial capacities.

Sarah Korwek joined Lanxess in 2022 as the Global Product Manager- Grease and one of her major responsibilities is to launch new products and grease technology. Prior to joining Lanxess, she was the product portfolio manager at inline plastics. During her tenure at Inline plastics she helped launch over 2 dozen products, obtained her six-sigma certification, and earned her first patent. She received her executive MBA at University of New Haven. Sarah is based out of Shelton, CT and when she is not keeping busy at Lanxess you can find her spending time with my family.

Tuesday, June 11

2023 Research Grant ReportElectrically Conductive Nanoparticle Additives for Greases Used in Electric Vehicles and Other Applications

As the popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) becomes increasingly widespread, the efficient and sustainable performance of tribological contacts within gears and rolling element bearings in electric vehicles becomes more imperative. In addition to elevated component loads and temperatures expected for EVs, concerns have arisen surrounding damaging electric currents causing electrical arcing across surfaces from leakage currents within electric drivetrains. Combating these destructive currents presents a critical requirement for the next generation of EV lubrication. Preliminary work suggests that blending conductive nanoparticles into grease reduces pitting damage on mechanical contacts under electrical loads. This work compares the performance of nanoparticle-enriched greases under electro-tribological loads to base and fully formulated oils under various speeds and loads. Likewise, results suggest that incorporating conductive nanoparticles in grease additive packages improves performance and reduces surface damage, ultimately extending lubricant and bearing operating life.

Jack Janik is a Graduate Research Assistant in the Multi-Scale Tribology Laboratory at Auburn University. A 2023 graduate of the Tribology Minor at Auburn University, Jack’s work focuses on improving electric vehicle (EV) sustainability and performance by optimizing greases within electric drivetrain systems. Jack is an active member of STLE, ASME, Pi Tau Sigma, and Tau Beta Pi at the collegiate level.

Sudip Saha is a graduate student pursuing his Ph.D. degree at Auburn University in the Multi-Scale Tribology Laboratory. Concurrently, he serves as a graduate research and teaching assistant. Sudip’s research is focused on investigating the mechanical damage of bearing components in electric vehicles, particularly induced by electric fields. Sudip has 3 years of professional work experience and is an active member of STLE and ASME.

Robert L. Jackson is a Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Auburn University. He received his BS, MS and PhD degrees from the Georgia Institute of Technology. After completing his PhD in 2004, he joined the faculty of Auburn University. In 2012, Prof. Jackson also initiated one of the first undergraduate minors in the field of Tribology. He is an ASME and STLE Fellow and has published over 120 journal papers. In 2024, Prof. Jackson became Editor-in-Chief for the ASME Journal of Tribology. Prof. Jackson’s research interests include contact mechanics, hydrodynamic lubrication, lubricant additives, electrical contacts, and machine component design.

German “Jimmy” Mills completed his Licenciate Degree in chemistry from the University of Santiago, Chile in 1981, and a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the Technical University of West Berlin, Germany, in 1985. From 1985 to 1987 he was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at Argonne National Laboratory, followed by a Research Fellow position at the California Institute of Technology between 1987 and 1989. He then joined the Department of Chemistry of Auburn University as an Assistant Professor and rose through the ranks to Professor. His publications have been centered on mechanisms of nanoparticle formation, polymer and semiconductor photochemistry as well as responsive materials. Dr. Mills is a member of the American Chemical Society.

ABSTRACTS & BIOS

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 12

Technical Sessions Day 2 • 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Time Paper #

10:00 AM - 10:40 AM 2401

10:45 AM - 11:25 AM 2406

Chuck Coe

Grease Technology Solutions, LLC 2023 Grease Production Survey Report

Gary Dudley GKD Consulting & Services

Joseph Kaperick

Darryl Williams

Afton Chemical Corporation

12:45 PM - 1:25 PM 2408 Michael Holloway SGS

1:30 PM - 2:10 PM 2421 Kartik Pondicherry

2:15 PM - 2:55 PM 2402

Recipes for Success: The Impact of Various Promoter Systems on Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease Performance

A Comparison of Bearing Manufacturers (NTN, Timken, SKF) Recommendations on Lubrication and Failure Analysis

Electro-Tribological Testing of Greases Under Dynamic Conditions Paul Staudinger

Dr. V. Vijayabaskar

Adika Ratna Sekar

R.M. Uthayaraja

Raj Kumar Maity

Anton Paar GmbH

Balmer Lawrie & Co Ltd

Best India Paper

A Study on the New Approach of Using Reactive SurfactantsSurfmers in Grease Processing

Wednesday, June 12

2023 Grease Production Survey

The NLGI Grease Production Survey continues to be the single most comprehensive global report on lubricating grease production. It tabulates the global production of grease providing a snapshot of growth by thickener type and base oil type, organized by geographic region of the world. This presentation will provide a summary overview of the key results and trends from the completed 2023 production survey.

Chuck Coe holds a BS Chemical Engineering from the Pennsylvania State University, along with the NLGI CLGS professional certification. He worked for Mobil and ExxonMobil for over 32 years, including 6 years as ExxonMobil’s Global Grease Technology Manager and many years as an industrial oil and grease formulator and technical advisor. He retired from ExxonMobil and launched Grease Technology Solutions LLC, a grease training and consulting business in 2009. He is a past president of NLGI, currently on the Board of Directors, and is the Advanced Grease Education Course Chair of NLGI. He has authored a number of technical papers and articles on grease and received Best Marketing Paper and Best Paper awards from both NLGI (2008) and ELGI (2009), and both the John A. Bellanti Memorial Meritorious Service Award (2012) and the NLGI Fellows Award (2015) from NLGI, along with the NLGI Award for Educational Excellence (2019), and in 2021 he received the Award for Achievement, NLGI’s highest award. He was most recently the technical lead for the development of the new NLGI High-Performance Multiuse (HPM) grease specification.

Gary Dudley is the President of GKD Consulting & Services in Spring, Texas, with over 27 years of experience in the Grease and Lubricants industry. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from the College of Wooster and a PhD in Chemistry from Pennsylvania State University. Before retiring from ExxonMobil, Gary held various research and management roles in Synthetic Base Oils, Aviation Lubes, Industrial Oils, Planning, and Greases. He is a member of both STLE and NLGI. Gary has received the NLGI SOPUS Products Award for Excellence and the NLGI Golden Grease Gun Award, and he is a former NLGI Board Member.

Wednesday, June 12

Recipes for Success: The Impact of Various Promoter Systems on Calcium Sulfonate Complex Grease Performance

The use of calcium sulfonate thickener systems has become increasingly popular due to recent market dynamics such as availability, pricing and labelling concerns of lithium-based soaps. While calcium sulfonate thickener systems can offer enhanced performance, ingredients and recipes for making this class of thickener are varied and finding the optimal solution for a given application can be very complicated. In this study, various promoters were used to create grease from 300 TBN overbased calcium sulfonate detergent and testing was carried out to better understand the impact that promoters have on finished grease performance.

Joe Kaperick is a Technical Advisor for Greases at Afton Chemical Corporation. Joe received a Master’s Degree in Analytical Chemistry from St. Louis University as well as undergraduate degrees in Chemistry, Fine Arts and Classical Humanities. He has been in the Industrial R&D area with primary focus on Grease since 1999.

Joe has actively served on the NLGI Board of Directors since 2007 and has been recognized as a Certified Lubricating Grease Specialist by NLGI. He chairs the joint NLGI/ELGI Working Group on Grease Particle Evaluation, and ASTM’s Section G.01 Chemical and Laboratory Tests. He is also a past President of NLGI.

Darryl Williams has studied numerous topics related to boundary lubrication, friction, and wear in more than 10 years at Afton Chemical and nearly 30 years as a synthetic and physical chemist and tribologist. His interests include chemical mechanisms driving lubricant performance and wear prevention, designing molecules for lubricant applications, and developing tribological testing strategies for lubricants. Darryl has a BS in chemistry from the University of Delaware and a Ph D in Inorganic Chemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Wednesday, June 12

A Comparison of Bearing Manufacturers (NTN, Timken, SKF) Recommendations on Lubrication and Failure Analysis

In the world of bearing lubrication and reliability, there are certain concepts that are universally agreed upon and others that are application or OEM centric. This presentation compares how 3 major bearing manufacturers (NTN, Timken, SKF) address common concepts such as lubrication choice and application as well as bearing failure analysis interpretation.

Michael D. Holloway, the Global Technical Manager for SGS of Geneva Switzerland has 39 years’ experience in industry including product research and development, product and application engineering, program management, technical sales and marketing, instruction including LMS development and certification preparation instruction for lubrication, maintenance, and reliability. He earned a master’s degree in polymer engineering, a bachelor’s degree in chemistry, and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy. He holds a patent for an in-use bearing cleaning product and has authored 9 books and has 15 professional certifications including the CLGS.

Wednesday, June 12

Electro-Tribological Testing of Greases under Dynamic Conditions

The visco-elastic characteristic of greases plays a very important role in its functioning as a lubricant in numerous applications wherein oils cannot be used. Apart from their rheological properties, their performance is also governed by their tribological properties, i.e., its friction and wear behaviour. With the phenomenal raise of electric and hybrid vehicles (EV) across the globe, there has been a lot of interest in understanding the electrical properties of greases to optimize these systems.

In this current study, the authors present a novel test methodology to investigate the electro-tribological behaviour of lubricants and greases under dynamic conditions. Tests were carried out on an MCR Tribometer with ball-on-three-plates and ball-bearing setup. Extended Stribeck curves which portray the frictional behaviour of the tribosystem as a function of sliding speeds spanning over eight orders of magnitude. Such tests offer information about the changes in the electrical behaviour of the tribosystem with changes in the sliding speed, as well as information about the transition between different lubricating regimes. Additionally, voltage ramps were also carried out to determine the breakdown voltage of the greased tribosystem at different sliding velocities. The effect of temperature on the electrical properties of the tribosystem was also studied here. Through a series of such investigations, it is possible to map the electro-tribological properties of greases and correlate them with advanced surface characterization to gain a better understanding of the system.

Dr. Kartik Pondicherry holds a degree in engineering in Metallurgy and Materials Science from Hyderabad, India and received his Master’s in Nanotechnology from the University of Ulm, in Ulm, Germany. He further went on to get a Doctorate in Tribology from the University of Leoben, in Leoben, Austria in the year 2011. Dr. Pondicherry has been working extensively in the field of Tribology for the past 15 plus years and is associated with the Rheometry department at Anton Paar for the past 10 years. He has been actively involved in the scientific community and has presented his research at numerous conferences, including invited talks. He has also received Yound Scientist Award from the MITC in Malaysia in 2015. In addition to authoring scientific publications, he has also authored book chapters and numerous white papers showcasing innovative test and analysis methodologies. Over the past years, Dr. Pondicherry has conducted over a 100 on-site seminars and workshops across 25 countries with participation from both academia and industry.

Paul Staudinger received a degree in Electrical Engineering from the Technical University of Graz, Austria, in 1998, whereafter he worked in warehouse automation and process engineering with ceramic semiconductors. In the year 2008, he joined the scientific instrument manufacturer Anton Paar and was responsible for the first fully automated Rheometer, the High Throughput Rheometer. He has wide experience in Rheometry and has applied this into the field of Tribology in developing numerous customer-specific solutions. In the beginning of 2020, he assumed the role of Global Product Specialist for Tribology. While his areas of specialization are lubricants and greases, over the years, he has also gathered experience in the area of bio tribology (hydrogels as cartilage replacement) and food tribology. His current focus is on the development of test methodologies for carrying out tribological measurements combined with measurement of electrical properties, especially for the field of electro mobility

Wednesday, June 12

Best India Paper

A Study on the New Approach of Using Reactive Surfactants – Surfmers in Grease Processing

Reactive surfactants, in principle, can be a combination of surfactants and an initiator (inisurf), a surfactant and a chain-transfer agent (transurf), or a surfactant and a monomer, which is referred to as a surfmer. One important advantage of surfmers over the other two is that their incorporation into polymer does not necessarily affect its molecular weight or the rate of polymerization. The area of reactive surfactants has witnessed a huge surge of activity as observed by the scientific studies of many European laboratories on the above subject. As per the literature survey, no work has been done to utilize Surfmers in lubricating grease. The most used surfmers for emulsion polymerizations are those based on allylics, (meth)acrylates, maleates(fumarates), or crotonates, which often possess additional sulfonates or sulfate and sulfonate groups to impart the requisite amphiphilic character with two reaction sites. In the present study, two types of Surfmers namely Lauryl (C-12) itaconate and Cetyl (C-18) itaconate are synthesized and have the advantages of being made from renewable sources adding to sustainability. FTIR technique is being used to characterize these renewable surfactants. These surfactants are used in lithium grease making both in the initial soap formation stage and post addition. Preliminary studies have shown that these surfmers act as Dropping point enhancers. The effect of these surfmers on post addition in sulphonated greases are studied. In the present work, an attempt has been made to study the dropping points, anticorrosion properties, and effect on to minimize surface hardening of sulphonate greases with above processing methods. The above study will help to ultilze different Surfmers in various stages of grease processing and alternatives to conventional thickner for lubricating grease.

Dr. V. Vijayabaskar is the current Vice President of Balmer Lawrie & Co. Ltd. India. He has over 19 years’ experience in industrial R&D, with hands-on experience in sulphonation, phosphation technologies in plant scale for making surfactants from renewable resources.

Dr. Vijayabaskar earned his post-doctoral research from Leibniz-Institute for Polymer forshung, Dresden Germany. He has contributed to 20 different international reputed journals as well as a book chapter. Dr. Vijayabaskar also has one German patent and two Indian patents granted.

Adika Ratna Sekar – not available

R.M. Uthayaraja – not available

Raj Kumar Maity – not available

ABSTRACTS & BIOS

Time

THURSDAY, JUNE 13

Technical Sessions Day 3 • 10:15 AM - 5:00 PM

10:15 AM - 10:55 AM 2413

11:00 AM - 11:40 AM 2418

Devon McCune

Gareth Fish

Jennifer Clark

Robert Dura

Liwen Wei

Noura Smaili Iderkou

The Lubrizol Corporation A New High Performance Calcium Grease as an Alternative to Lithium Complex Greases

Novitas Chem Solutions Grease Manufacturing Toward Net Zero - Aluminum Complex Grease Example

11:45 AM - 12:45 PM Networking

Yoshiyuki Nagasawa

12:45 PM - 1:25 PM 2420

1:30 PM - 2:10 PM 2417

2:15 PM - 2:55 PM 2419

Daisuke Tsutsui

Ryosuke Saito

Tyler Kuchta

Stuart McTavish

Timothy Chipuk

Mahedeo Patil

Rohit Agarwal

Deepak Saxena

Nidhi Jain

Sudhir Sachdeva

Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd Suggestion of “Newly PAG Urea Grease”

3:00 PM - 3:40 PM 2427

3:45 PM - 4:25 PM 2426

4:30 PM - 5:10 PM 2425

SI Group

Antioxidant and Antiwear Additives to Address Regulatory Challenges of Greases

Siddharth Grease & Lubes Pv Ltd Environmentally Acceptable, Biodegradable & Sustainable Greases in Different Soap Thickener Technologies

Siddharth Sachdeva Trinity Lubes and Greases FZC (UAE)

Nubar Dailerian Desilube High Performance Additive Packages for Environmentally Acceptable Lubricants (EAL) and Food Grade Greases

Carl Kernizan KV Tech Consulting LLC

George Dodos

Raj Shah

George Dodos

Andreas Dodos

ELDON’S S.A. Revolutionizing Electric Vehicle Lubrication: Navigating Low Temperatures with Innovative Grease Solutions

Koehler Instrument Company, Inc.

ELDON’S S.A. Lubricating Grease from Cradle-toGate: A Comprehensive Study

Mehdi Fathi-Najafi Nynas AB

Thursday, June 13

A New High Performance Calcium Grease as an Alternative to Lithium Complex Greases

Lithium soap thickened greases dominated the world stage from their introduction in 1940, when Clarence E. Earle first filed for a US patent, until now. At their peak in 2013, the global market share was 77 wt% and the global production volume was more than 900,000 tonnes. Today, lithium thickeners still dominate the market, with 62 wt% of the market, but conventional lithium has fallen to its lowest level since detailed record keeping began almost 40 years ago.

From 2015 onwards the cost of lithium hydroxide has been extremely volatile. Since then, the supply pressure eased with an increase in supply and easing in demand caused by Covid-19. As the economies of the world got back on their feet, demand for electric vehicles soared exponentially and so did the price of lithium, reaching $85,000 per metric ton (MT) in December 2022. Today lithium is in the $20,000 to $30,000 per MT. The classification and labelling of lithium hydroxide under REACH as a reproductive toxin has added to industry woes.

This presentation will review the various thickener types currently being scrutinized as alternatives to conventional commodity lithium and premium complex lithium thickeners. This includes anhydrous calcium and mixed soaps, calcium sulfonates, aluminium complexes, as well as urea-derivatives. This presentation will also introduce a new generation of hybrid calcium greases, showing comparisons with lithium complex thickened greases.

Dr.

Gareth Fish

Devon McCune has a BS degree in BioMolecular Engineering from the Milwaukee School of Engineering. He’s been in the grease industry for 3 years. His grease career began at Chemtool 2020 where he worked as a research and development chemist before joining the grease team at the Lubrizol Corporation in 2021 as a research and development chemist.

PhD DIC BSc(Hons)

ARCS CSci CChem MRSC MEI CLS CLGS

Dr Gareth Fish is a Technical Fellow at the Lubrizol Corporation, Wickliffe, Ohio. He holds a PhD in tribology from Imperial College, London, and has more than 34 years grease industry experience. He is an internationally recognized, multiple (x17) award-winning author of more than 80 technical papers including 18 NLGI papers. He is a member of the NLGI Board of Directors and chair of the NLGI basic Grease Course. He was 2020 recipient of the NLGI Award for Achievement. He is an NLGI Certified Lubricating Grease Specialist (CLGS), a Chartered Scientist and STLE Fellow and Certified Lubrication Specialist (CLS). He is active within ASTM sitting or chairing multiple Committees related to grease and tribology. Previously worked at UK Ministry of Defence and GKN Automotive in UK and USA.

Dr. Jennifer Clark is a Technology Development Manager for Industrial Grease Additives at The Lubrizol Corporation. She holds a Ph.D. in Organic/Organometallic chemistry from the State University of New York – Buffalo. She has 4 years in the grease industry focusing on Open Gear Lubricant Technology, overbased calcium sulfonates and new alternatives for to lithium greases. Previous to becoming a Technology Development Manager for Industrial Grease, Jennifer spent seven years in Metalworking with a focus on new rust preventive technology.

Dr Robert Dura PhD CLGS received his B.S. in Chemistry from Cleveland State University. He then worked at Curragh Chemistries in Cleveland, OH, synthesizing small pre-drug intermediates for the pharmaceutical industry. He was accepted into graduate school at The Ohio State University for chemistry, working for Prof. Leo Paquette. He graduated with his Ph.D. which focused primarily on natural product synthesis. He then carried out post-doctoral work at the University of Pittsburgh for Prof. Scott Nelson on iridium and rhodium mediated enantioselective catalysis of cyclic and acyclic conjugated systems. Following his post-doc, he returned to Cleveland to work for Ben Venue Labs, a subsidiary of Boehringer Ingelheim. At Ben Venue, Robert was responsible for new product development, product lifecycle management, manufacturing support, and analytical method development and validation. Since 2014, he has been with The Lubrizol Corporation, Wickliffe, OH, initially as Technology Manager for Grease Development within Industrial products and in 2023 was promoted to Director of Grease and Metalworking. In 2022, Robert passed the NLGI Certification examination to become an NLGI Certified Lubricating Grease Specialist.

Thursday, June 13

Grease Manufacturing Toward Net Zero: Aluminum Complex Grease Example

Achieving Net Zero poses a significant challenge for the lubricant industry as a whole and is particularly difficult for the grease manufacturing sector. Novitas wishes to present an example with aluminum complex grease wherein a Preform thickener pellet, an already thicken HX-1 composition, allows the grease formation via oil down and milling at ambient temperatures. This patent pending process yields premium, high-quality grease comparable to, if not superior to, grease made via traditional in-situ manufacturing at markedly higher temperature, 200C. The preform pellet is dust free, IPA-free, and solvent-free, and is easy and friendly to use. In this presentation we shall discuss how we create/manage such a green and energy-efficient chemistry from making the pellet to grease formation, and thus moving Net Zero a step closer for the industry through the use of Preform thickener chemistry.

With over 30 years of combined technical and commercial expertise, Liwen Wei holds credit for 15 patents in the lubricant and grease industries. Beginning his consulting career in chemical manufacturing, grease, and lube segments since 2016, he also established a specialty sales business in 2015. His entrepreneurial spirit led him to venture into preform grease thickener innovation and manufacturing.

Noura Smaili Iderkou is a Chemist with a background in cosmetics chemistry. Joined Novitas Chem Solutions in 2021, assuming the role of Technical Manager. Actively contributed to numerous innovative product developments within the grease and lubricants industry, playing a pivotal role in driving advancements and revolutions.

Thursday, June 13

Suggestion of “Newly PAG Urea Grease”

Reduction of CO2 emissions by the electrification and efficient operation of automobiles has proved critical in our efforts to realize the sustainable society as laid down in SDGs, that is largely relied on technological advances in CASE; Connected, Autonomous/ Automated, Shared and Electric.

To cope with automation and electrification as the fundamental CASE technologies, grease-lubricated automotive components such as linear motion mechanisms with ball screws for EPS: electric power steering and EHB: electric hydraulic brake are commonly used. Especially, EPDM: ethylene propylene diene monomer is commonly used as a sealing material in brake components such as EHB, and consideration of compatibility with EPDM, lithium soap grease with Polyalkylene Glycol base oil is widely used. With the spread of EMB: Electro-mechanical brake in the future, the environment in which grease is used is expected to be even more sever. Since conventional lithium soap greases using Polyalkylene Glycol as a base oil are likely not to satisfy some performances such as heat resistance and low temperature property, so the improvement is required.

This presentation focuses on the development outcome of the urea grease using newly developed Polyalkylene Glycol in order to solve the technical issues such as heat resistance and low temperature property.

Yoshiyuki Nagasawa graduated from the Graduate School of Engineering at Iwate University in March 2017 and joined Kyodo Yushi Co. Ltd. in April the same year. In May, he was assigned to the Grease Technology Department and after learning the basics of grease evaluation, he was transferred to the Automotive Component Group in April 2018, mainly involved in the development of grease used in wipers and power windows and worked on improving efficiency and reducing torque. In October 2020, he moved to the Production Engineering Department and worked on improving productivity at the plant. He returned to Automotive Component Group in April 2023 and currently is managing of grease development for various electric vehicle parts including electronic power steering and electric hydraulic brakes to improve CASE (Connected, Autonomous/Automated, Shared, Electric) technology.

Daisuke Tsutsui graduated from the Graduate School of Science and Technology, Tokyo University of Science in Mar. and joined Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd. in Apr. 2005. In the following month, was assigned to the Grease Technology Dept. where he learnt the fundamentals of grease and grease evaluation. From 2007, involved in the development of lubricating grease for automotive electronic power steering and achieved the long life and high output of EPS. Then, from 2010, engaged mainly in the development of automotive hub unit grease to promote the fuel efficiency of vehicles. Currently, managing of grease development for various electric vehicle parts including electronic power steering and electric brake booster to improve CASE (Connected, Autonomous/ Automated, Shared, Electric) technology.

Ryosuke Saito graduated from the Faculty of Engineering, Kanagawa University in Mar. and joined Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd. in Apr. 2012. In the following month, was assigned to the Grease Technology Dept. where he learnt the fundamentals of grease evaluation. From May 2013, engaged mainly in the development of automotive hub unit grease to promote the fuel efficiency of vehicles. Then, from Apr. 2015, involved in the development of lubricating oil and grease for industrial robot reducer and achieved the long life and improved work efficiency of industrial robots. Currently, participating the development of greases for various electric vehicle parts including electronic power steering and electric brake booster to improve CASE (Connected, Autonomous/Automated, Shared, Electric) technology.

Thursday, June 13

Antioxidant and Antiwear Additives to Address Regulatory Challenges of Greases

The lubricants and greases industries are facing regulatory challenges. Several critical chemistries may be impacted by these pressures including common antioxidants that are already, or may be in the near future, labeled as reprotoxic or environmentally hazardous and antiwear additives containing heavy metals are under continuous scrutiny by regulatory bodies who want to minimize environmental impact. New additive options are under development to address these regulatory challenges while maintaining the performance of traditional technologies.

This study explores a new combined antiwear and antioxidant technology that can provide equivalent performance to traditional additive technologies found in automotive and industrial greases. This new additive technology demonstrates comparable antiwear and antioxidant performance to traditional additives used in grease formulations. The data generated in this study indicates that this new additive technology can replace traditional antiwear and antioxidant technologies and minimizes environmental impact by removing the need for heavy metal-containing antiwear additives in greases.

Additionally, this study explores alternative non-reprotoxic, non-PBT/vPvB diphenylamine-based antioxidants, which provide equivalent performance to traditional diphenylamine-based antioxidants commonly used in the lubricants and greases industries. This antioxidant retains synergistic effects when used in combination with hindered phenolic antioxidants, minimizing the need for extensive reformulation of additive packages and finished greases. Performance and regulatory evaluations have been conducted in grease applications to show this new diphenylamine can enable the long-term production of high-performance greases.

Tyler Kuchta is currently Sr. Technical Manager at SI Group for Coatings, Fuel and Lubricant additive chemicals. Tyler has over 10 years of experience in the Fuel and Lubricant additive industries holding roles in Product Development, Product Deployment, Technical Service and Marketing with SI Group, The Lubrizol Corporation and RSC Bio Solutions.

Dr Stuart McTavish is currently Market Development Director at SI Group for Coatings, Fuel, Lubricant and Oilfield additive chemicals. Stuart has more than 20-year experience in the Fuel and Lubricant additive industries, having held a variety of Product Development, Technical Service, Sales, Marketing and New Business Development roles with SI Group, Corda, ICI - Uniqema and Infineum.

Tim Chipuk has over 20 years experience as an established problem solver for oilfield, fuel, and lubricant additive businesses. He has held various senior positions within a variety of companies to gain an eclectic background. These positions include business unit operations, marketing, CAPEX/OPEX financial planning, R&D, project/product management, new business development and sales. Tim currently holds the position of Senior Market Development Manager – Fuels & Lubricants for SI Group. He main responsibility includes developing and maintaining a viable strategy within the F&L additive market space for SI Group. In his free time, Tim enjoys spending time in the outdoors with his family and friends.

Mahadeo Patil, having more than 20 years of industry experience for domestic and export market. Worked in Paint and Coatings, Water Treatment, Oilfield chemicals industries. Worked with service companies NalcoChampion (ChampionX), Thermax in the past, before joining the SI Group since 2017.

Thursday, June 13

Environmentally Acceptable, Biodegradable & Sustainable Greases in Different Soap Thickener Technologies

Conventionally, more than 90% of these lubricants are formulated with mineral basestocks which are derived from petroleum source. Mineral base oils are known to have low biodegradability (15-35%). They are also considered as non-renewable sources and are toxic to the environment. Vegetable Oils are a natural renewable source which can work as a lubricant and are readily biodegradable and non-toxic. Vegetable oils however have certain limitations which include relatively small viscosity range, poor oxidation and thermal stability at high temperatures, poor hydrolytic stability and poor low temperature flow characteristics due to the presence of double bonds in the molecular structure. Synthetic Esters which are reaction products of Fatty acids derived from natural sources and alcohols can be a viable alternative to mineral base oils.

As a responsible organization, author’s Technology Centre had taken initiative of developing Environmentally acceptable, sustainable, non-toxic and biodegradable greases based on Synthetic Esters having high renewable content. These greases offer a viable alternative to customers against mineral oil-based greases particularly for environment sensitive areas such as agriculture, marine, construction, railways etc. This paper discusses biodegradable greases developed by author’s Centre using different soap chemistries [1] – simple, mixed and complex. These greases have been evaluated for all critical physicochemical and tribological properties. Their results have also been compared with the conventional mineral oil-based greases. The developed greases are found to have excellent thermal-oxidation stability with excellent lubrication properties. The usage of these greases will solve the issues of environmental contamination & sustainability to a large extent.

Mr. Rohit Kumar Agarwal has worked for more than 28 years in Grease Industry. He has spent major part of his career with Balmer Lawrie & Company Limited who are one of the leading manufacturers of greases in India. Shri. Agarwal has worked in various capacities at Balmer Lawrie & Company Limited including Head of R&D, Head of Supply Chain Management as well as Head of Operations.

He is author of several papers presented in NLGI – IC chapters in 2006, 2010, 2013 and 2022 as well as author of paper presented at NLGI - USA in 2014. Mr. Agarwal has also presented papers in Mining conferences and OTA conference at IICT Hyderabad.

He is credited with development of several low temperature greases for defense applications, biodegradable greases, biodegradable sugar mill compound, steel industry high temperature greases and lubricants as well as long life greases for automotive applications. Shri. Agarwal has done his B.Tech in Oil Technology from HBTI Kanpur in 1995 and is currently working as Chief Technology Officer at Siddharth Grease & Lubes Pvt. Ltd. Gurugram India

Dr. Deepak Saxena is CTO (Lubes) at Siddharth Grease & Lubes Pvt Limited – a leading private label grease and lubricant manufacturing organization and having manufacturing plants in two strategic geographic locations India and Dubai.

Earlier, Dr Saxena superannuated as Executive Director (Lube Technology) from R&D Centre of Indian Oil Corporation Limited – a Fortune 500 company after serving for more than 34 years.

Holding a doctorate from IIT Roorkee (erstwhile University of Roorkee) in chemistry, Dr. Saxena has more than three decades of consecutive experience in the downstream hydrocarbons sector, notably in the areas of lubricant technology, fuels, additives and pipeline research. He has been instrumental in the development of fuel and energy efficient automotive & industrial oils / greases and fuel efficient high octane / cetane gasoline /diesel fuels with proven credentials.

Dr. Saxena has over 75 research publications in national/international journals and several granted patents to his credit. Dr Saxena has also served as nominee Director on Board of AVI OIL and Lubrizol India. He had also played active roles in Scientific Societies of SAE, NLGI-IC, ISFL and Tribology Society of India.

ABSTRACTS & BIOS

Ms Nidhi Jain did her M Sc. from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi in 2008 and M Phil from Maharishi Markandeshwar University, Mullana in 2009. She was one of the four students selected for Deakin University, Australia Scholarship in 2010. Currently she is working as Deputy Manager-R&D in Siddharth Grease & Lubes Pvt Ltd for the last over 10 years. Her areas of interest are development & evaluation of lubricating greases & oils. She has proficiency in ISO/IEC 17025 Accreditation and Defense products approvals.

She has presented / published 7 papers and got PPC Gonsalves Best Paper Award at NLGI India Chapter 24th Grease Conference 2022.

Mr. Sudhir Sachdeva did his Mechanical Engineering from Delhi College of Engineering in 1972. He joined his family business of lubricants marketing soon after his college. His entrepreneurial prowess driven him to venture into grease making in 1988 establishing Siddharth Petroproducts. Subsequently the company was rechristened to Siddharth Grease & Lubes Pvt Ltd with two grease plants in Delhi. Third generation of Sachdevas entered into grease making by establishing a state-of-the-art lubricants company Trinity Lubes & Greases FZC in UAE in 2018.

He has been involved with NLGI India Chapter activities right from its inception and currently he is President of the NLGI-India Chapter since 2023. He received the Life-Time Achievement Award from NLGI India Chapter in 2015 and Golden Grease Gun award in 90th Annual Meeting of NLGI, USA for his contribution to the grease industry.

Mr Siddharth Sachdeva, Director, Trinity Lubes and Greases FZC (UAE). After gaining his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in CS Engineering from Warwick University, UK, Siddharth then went and gained his MBA from IIM in Bangalore, India. Further, he pursued a strategic marketing programme from the University of Michigan, US. Using his education experience, Siddharth drove the technology changes within the family business and focused on corporate culture within the group upgrading the same to the level of being one of the great lubricant and grease companies worldwide. The group is known for its dedication and attention to detail which has brought the world’s greatest brands to their doors and they can boost customers such as Castrol, Shell, Mobil, Valvoline, Fuchs, Indian Oil, as well as Timken and SKF to name but a few.

With four plants in India the family looked to expand abroad and under Siddharth’s leadership the group built and commissioned their new pant in the UAE, a technological state-of-the-art lubricant and grease plant on the Inner harbour of the Hamriyah Free Zone. This is the first of its kind in the region, being a fully automated, PLC controlled grease and lubricant plant run on ABB technology. Siddharth is married with two children and his wife Bhavika, plays a prominent and important role in the company next to Siddharth.

Being a natural sportsman, playing cricket, tennis and golf, he brings these competitive talents to the business to drive it forward. He has become the “Face“ of the group, often invited to give keynote speeches at industry events. He is a great ambassador for the industry and the family business, making sure that it stays true to their credo of being the finest private label Grease and Lubricant manufacturer worldwide.

Thursday, June 13

High Performance Additive Packages for Environmentally Acceptable Lubricants (EAL) and Food Grade Greases

The requirements for environmentally acceptable lubricants (EAL) and greases have been playing an increasingly important role in many industrial applications, particularly in the last two decades. The present-day requirements for biodegradable and eco-friendly lubricants and greases imply that they have properties that can minimize, if not eliminate, negative environmental impact, such as contamination of soil and water caused by lost lubrication, leakage, and accidents. Besides environmental demands for greases, proper lubrication still stays as one of the critical tasks to maintain equipment in working condition, reduce costly downtimes and energy consumption. To meet industry standards and environmental demands, grease manufacturers have to continuously improve the performance of their lubricants’ formulations. The vital parameters such as load carrying capacity, anti-wear, friction reduction, shear stability, corrosion protection, temperature tolerance and ability to handle presence of water are critical for effective performance of these greases and subsequently for the life of the tools and/or equipment. Thus, formulators have to consider all the previously mentioned parameters when designing high-performance EAL greases in different thickener and ecofriendly base oil types.

In this paper we will present the results of a comparative study based on P-S food grade and eco-friendly high-performance additives formulated in lithium, calcium sulfonate and polyurea thickened greases targeted for demanding industrial applications.

Nubar Dailerian received his BComm in 2004 from McGill University and MBA from The Wharton School of Business in 2013. Worked in various strategic projects for several multinationals and financial services for over 10 years. He transitioned to chemical manufacturing with the acquisition of Desilube in 2018 with the aim to develop new compounds and formulations to meet the increasing demand for environmentally focused chemicals. His commitment to the environment has fueled the continuous partnerships with leading lubricant companies and experienced formulators.

Dr. Carl F Kernizan received his BS in 1982 from CCNY, Ph.D. in 1987 from CUNY and Post-Doctoral degree from KSU in 1989. Worked in various technical and commercial roles from 1990 to 2017 with the Timken Company, Lubrizol, Jesco Resources Inc, Axel Americas LLC, Warren Oil and Chemtool Inc. He has authored over thirty articles in oil and grease tribology and owns 2 patents. He founded KV Tech Consulting LLC in 2017.

Thursday, June 13

Revolutionizing Electric Vehicle Lubrication: Navigating Low Temperatures with Innovative Grease Solutions

In the pursuit of advancing electric vehicle (EV) technology, the continuous partnership between mobility and grease takes center stage. This study delves into the intricate world of lubricating greases, focusing on their low-temperature behavior—a perennial challenge for grease formulators. Embracing the theme of the NLGI conference, “Mobility and Grease: A Continuous Partnership,” we explore the potential of novel lubricating greases with low viscosity synthetic base oils as lubricants for the bearings of EVs and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs). Our investigation employs a series of lab-scale grease samples, meticulously crafted to address the demands of electric motor bearings. The evaluation centers on cold flow properties, gauged through a Low Temperature Flow Tester following the DIN 51805-2 standard (Determination of flow pressure of lubricating greases according to Kesternich method). The test matrix involves assessing cold flow pressure across temperatures ranging from -0oC to -40oC. Additionally, measurements are taken after various relaxation periods—4h up to 8h—before determining the flow pressure. This study introduces a modified technique, extending temperature control time to assess the grease’s low- temperature properties under conditions beyond the standard test. The comparative analysis of results offers valuable insights into the cold flow performance of advanced greases poised to revolutionize electric vehicle motors. Join us on this scientific journey as we unlock the potential of cutting-edge greases, paving the way for enhanced electric vehicle performance in the face of low temperatures.

Dr. George S. Dodos has a Diploma and a PhD degree in Chemical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens in Greece. He is working with ELDON’S S.A. in research and development of new innovative products and sustainable lubrication solutions. He also holds a Research Associate position in the Laboratory of Fuel Technology and Lubricants in the National Technical University of Athens with his research activities focusing on sustainable and biobased fuels and lubricants. He has more than 100 publications in international peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings on topics related to conventional and biobased lubricants and fuels. George has received the ELGI AGM Best Paper Award three times as well as the NLGI Author Award-Application. He is also an active member in the SAE Fuels and Lubricants Committee, and he acts as session organizer in the “Driveline Lubricants” session and lead session organizer in the recently formed “Lubricating Greases for Conventional and Electric Propulsion Systems” technical session (FFL 390). He is affiliated to several international organizations including ELGI, STLE, ASTM, SAE, ACS and IBBS. He chairs the joint ELGI/NLGI Biobased Greases WG and the End-of-Life TF in the ELGI STC.

Dr. Raj Shah is a Director at Koehler Instrument Company in New York, where he has worked for the last 25 years. He is an elected Fellow by his peers at NLGI, STLE, Institute of Physics and the Energy Institute.

A Ph.D in Chemical Engineering from The Penn State University and a Fellow from The Chartered Management Institute, London, Raj just became one of the first folks in the USA to be qualified as a Chartered Petroleum Engineer with the Energy Institute. An adjunct professor at the Dept. of Material Science and Chemical Engineering at State University of New York, Stony Brook, Raj has over 450 publications and has been active in the industry for 3 decades.

Thursday, June 13

Lubricating Grease from Cradle-to-Gate: A Comprehensive Study

The main purpose of the lubricants industry has often been the improved performance of machine elements and the minimisation of losses during the use phase. These efforts can be identified as improving energy efficiency through better lubricity, minimising wear through appropriate tribological systems and extending product service life using suitable additives. Technology today provides ever-improving options for the above parameters that lead to the development of more sustainable products as well for the industry as for the society. Each year, numerous technical papers are being published, highlighting operational performance parameters of lubrication products, but what happens before these products reach the use phase of their life cycle?

Can we improve the performance of lubricating grease, even before it reaches the application point? Obviously, the formulation and production method used will dictate the greases performance in the field, however, these are the same two parameters that will also provide the manufacturers and the end users with the sustainability performance of the product. There are a number of methodologies published1 that go through step-by-step on how the product carbon footprint of a formulated product is calculated. Most of these models are fairly generic and even though they are useful as a tool, for example, they cannot intrinsically distinguish between a good and a better performing product particularly in the case of a formulated grease solely by looking at the carbon footprint.

However, in this study, the authors are applying a proven Product Carbon Footprint (PCF) model together with prior experience2, by investigating three different grease thickener systems and a combination of different mineral base oils and one re-refined oil, with a known impact on product sustainability. The purpose of this industrial-scale study is to broaden the understanding of PCF and lifecycle-analysis understanding within the lubricating grease industry. Ultimately the expectation is that this work will act as a tool for developing benchmarks3 with regards to product sustainability within all bounds of the grease formulators accountability, from cradle to gate.

Dr. George S. Dodos has a Diploma and a PhD degree in Chemical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens in Greece. He is working with ELDON’S S.A. in research and development of new innovative products and sustainable lubrication solutions. He also holds a Research Associate position in the Laboratory of Fuel Technology and Lubricants in the National Technical University of Athens with his research activities focusing on sustainable and biobased fuels and lubricants. He has more than 100 publications in international peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings on topics related to conventional and biobased lubricants and fuels. George has received the ELGI AGM Best Paper Award three times as well as the NLGI Author Award-Application. He is also an active member in the SAE Fuels and Lubricants Committee, and he acts as session organizer in the “Driveline Lubricants” session and lead session organizer in the recently formed “Lubricating Greases for Conventional and Electric Propulsion Systems” technical session (FFL 390). He is affiliated to several international organizations including ELGI, STLE, ASTM, SAE, ACS and IBBS. He chairs the joint ELGI/NLGI Biobased Greases WG and the End-of-Life TF in the ELGI STC.

Andreas Dodos received a Masters degree in Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology from the University of Manchester, UK. He has spent the last 18 years at Eldon’s SA, with duties mainly focused on industrial and marine lubricants development and technical support. Since 2007 he has been actively involved in product stewardship with focus on global regulatory developments. He is a member in a number of professional bodies such as the ELGI, the Hellenic Maintenance Society and National Tribology Centre. He is involved with ongoing projects in the areas of compressor and turbine oils as well as industrial greases. He is currently serving on the ELGI Board of Directors.

Mehdi Fathi-Najafi earned a MSc in Chemical Engineering and a Licentiate degree in Chemical Engineering Design from Chalmers University of Technology of Gothenburg in Sweden.

Mehdi has more than 28 years of experience in the global base oil and grease industry and is the recipient of Clarence E. Earle Memorial Award. He has also received several Best Paper Awards within the field of lubricating grease. He has two patents and numerous articles published in a dozen publications covering a variety of specialist areas, including Filtration, Base oils, Lubricating Greases, Applied Rheology and Tribology. Mehdi joined Nynas in 2008. His current function at Nynas is Chief Specialist.

GENERAL INFORMATION

If you have any questions or need assistance during your visit, please stop by the NLGI Registration Desk, located in the San Antonio Grand Ballroom. Important announcements, schedule/location, etc. changes will all be sent via the Whova app.

Name Badges:

Badges are required to attend the NLGI sessions and events. Please be respectful and mindful of everyone’s social distance preferences. If interested, place a colored dot near your name on your badge, indicating your preference.

l Red Dot: Hello but I am keeping my distance, no contact please

l Yellow Dot: OK with Talking and Elbows only

l Green Dot: Hugs, High Fives & Handshakes welcome

Meeting App

NLGI is once again utilizing the Whova mobile app for this year’s meeting. Please download for all the latest info and alerts.

*If previously downloaded, please sign-in with your email address and password previously created. If prompted for code, please enter: 2024NLGI91

STEP 1

• On Android devices, go to the Play Store

• On Apple devices, go to the App Store

STEP 2

• Search for Whova (icon will look like this)

• Click on the app to select it

• Click “Install”

• Click “Open”

• Click on “Find My Event / Conference”

• In the search bar type in NLGI

• Click on the NLGI Title — NLGI 91st Annual Meeting

• Click “Join (registered attendees only)”

• Pop up message appears; choose “Sign In”

• Enter e-mail address you registered under, click “Continue”

• Create your Whova account, click “Continue”

• Continue with account information

• Click the NLGI Title to enter the NLGI 91st Annual Meeting event

You are now in the Mobil App! Here you can:

• Click on the image in the upper left to change/update your personal profile and change the app settings

Attire

Typical June temperatures in San Antonio range from mid 90’s to low 100’s. Meeting room temperatures can vary so a light jacket or sweater is encouraged. Attire for the meeting is business casual and comfortable shoes are encouraged. Closing party will be on the La Cantera Golf Course Driving Range. Attire is casual; jeans are acceptable.

Smoking Policy

The La Cantera Resort & Spa is a non-smoking property. Smoking and vaping is prohibited except in designated outdoor areas.

Under ADDITIONAL RESOURCES, you can:

• Click DOCUMENTS for all meeting related documents including the Display Table Floorplan

• SURVEY button has all the Technical Sessions surveys. We encourage and appreciate all feedback!

• The PHOTO button allows you to view photos posted by other attendees. Feel free to upload your favorite photos.

• FLOORMAPS button includes the hotel floorplans for the Second Floor, Third Floor and Outdoor to help you navigate your way around

• SPONSOR button allows you to see all the wonderful sponsors for the 2024 meeting!

On the bottom tool bar, you can:

• The AGENDA tab shows the full meeting schedule by day with the ability to customize to your own schedule

• Click the ATTENDEES tab to find all attendees for the meeting. Network before the meeting, during the meeting and after the meeting.

• COMMUNITY tab is where the Organizer Announcements will be displayed. It also has all kinds of additional information, fun tidbits, Ask the Organizers option and much more!

• MESSAGES button allows you privately message other attendees and only shares your contact info if you allow

Sponsored by:

HOTEL FLOOR PLAN

San Antonio, TX, USA

La Cantera Resort & Spa

SAFETY & EMERGENCY INFORMATION

La Cantera Resort & Spa

La Cantera’s Security Team and Equipment

La Cantera Resort & Spa is equipped with a Loss Prevention staff of 15 professional men and women, consisting of 11 officers and 4 supervisors. These men and women are equipped to handle a wide range of security incidents. A full-time dispatcher watches cameras and manages emergency calls and building alarms 24/7. The property has a fire watch system, 177 cameras spread throughout the property, and 294 fire extinguishers and 7 AED (automated external defibrillator) units. The property has 27 crash bags and first-aid cabinets supplied by our partner CINTAS. These are checked and restocked on a monthly basis.

La Cantera Loss Prevention Officer Training

Our Loss Prevention staff get the best training in the industry. They are trained in first-aid and CPR and are given de-escalation/conflict resolution training. Within six months of hire, our Officers are now expected to complete their American Hotel & Lodging Certification, which certifies them as hospitality specialists, as opposed to mere “security” like you find in most hotels (if they have security at all). Our Officers are likewise expected to pass training with the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC), to get their Food Handler’s Licenses, and it is recommended that they become OSHA General Industry certified.

All public phones found outside of guest rooms throughout the property only call to front desk (so as to prevent fraud or pranks or misuse). You may contact the front desk to call for emergency services at any time by simply picking up the phone.

First Aid

The Hotel has qualified first aiders/CPR on duty 24/7, available to Team Members, guests and visitors. First aid requisites and supplies are checked regularly.

The security team also has epinephrine on-hand and all security team members are trained to administer it.

Food Safety

The Resort culinary team of Chefs is certified by ServSafe and its team of Cooks are certified by Texas Food Handlers. Chef Brassfield, Resort Executive Chef, has been certified in the ServSafe allergen program. They are committed to having their team of chefs certified in the ServSafe Allergen program, disseminating this knowledge to the other culinary team members via departmental training. La Cantera Resort and Spa is committed to having the entire culinary team compliant to the Sergio Lopez Food Allergy Awareness Act prior to September 1, 2024.

All food at the NLGI conference buffet and food items will be labeled if they contain any of the top 9 food allergens: wheat, egg, milk, soy, sesame, shellfish, fish, peanuts, and tree nuts. In addition, NLGI attendees are allergic to or avoid pork, beef, and alcohol. The labels will also denote whether the food is gluten-free, vegetarian, and/or vegan.

As an “Allergy Aware” event, please note we have a participant at the Annual Meeting who has a life-threatening allergy to all nuts (consumption, touch and inhalation).

NO NUTS or products with nuts will be served on our menus. We also respectfully ask you to refrain from bringing nuts to the annual meeting event space, including products which “may contain traces of” nuts. If you bring any nuts, please eat them and wash your hands before entering the event space.

SAFETY & EMERGENCY INFORMATION

Our members, guests, and partners with severe food allergies and their families join us in thanking you for your cooperation and compliance.

As always, please contact Tracy Stuckrath, our meeting planner, with any questions, (404-242-0530) or tracy@thrivemeetings.com.

Fires, Evacuations, and Inclement Weather

In the event of a fire, our evacuation rally points are:

1) The Front drive (City View Terrace)

2) The West parking lot

3) The Grille254 parking lot

4) The Esparza Lawn

A coordinating Crisis Response Team (consisting of the Loss Prevention and Facility Services Teams) combine to assist guests as they evacuate—and alert guests when it is time to re-enter the property following the evacuation.

In the event of a tornado or hurricane, where cover is sought from blown glass and damaging winds, we have the second floor back-of-house hallway. This hallway provides a windowless stretch that is easily and quickly reached from the third floor (the main entrance of our property).

In the event of a flood, we have floors 4 through 7 corridors, which provide enough height to offer protection from high waters. In the event of lightning, our pools are closed until lightning is outside of a five-mile radius.

Earthquakes

In the event of an earthquake, our Facility Services Team combines with Loss Prevention to initiate a post-earthquake patrol in search of leaks, ruptured gas lines, loss of power, or chemical spills, and takes action accordingly. If necessary, a nearby sister hotel is available as a fallback property. It is 1 mile away.

Active Shooter

In the event of an active shooter, La Cantera follows the guidance set out by the Department of Homeland Security as found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rDdY4EaKVY

Our Shelter-in-Place

Rooms

Our shelter-in-place rooms are the La Cantera Ballroom and the San Antonio Ballroom, both of which provide ample space during an emergency.

Reaching Loss Prevention

Loss Prevention Officers and Supervisors: Extension 2278

Director of Loss Prevention: Extension 2284 (Position currently vacant)

In the event that you have additional questions or concerns, please call Clayton Swan: 210-558.2278

DISPLAY TABLES

ATTENDEES

Last First Company

Agee Jerry Chevron Products Company

Ahmed Saad Harrison Manufacturing Co. Pty Ltd.

Ahrabi Ryan Oil Center Research

Business Category Member Status

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer New Member

Alfano Holly ILMA Industry Partner

Allan Jesse LANXESS Corporation

Allred Tom ChemCeed

Aluma Marc Industrial Quimica Lasem S.A.U.

Anderson Mike Falex Corporation

Aridi Toufic ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Arraztoa Javier SQM North America Corp.

Bailey Matthew Quaker Houghton

Baker Ty Ergon, Inc.

Bala Vasu TRCC

Baldrica Anthony Chrysan Industries

Banogon Cristina Petron Corporation

Barkett Kyle AOCUSA

Barnes John Southwestern Petroleum Corporation

Barreto-Pohlen Josef Quaker Houghton

Battaglia John Palmer Holland, Inc.

Beack Su Mi LANXESS Canada

Bedwell AJ NSF International

Bellas David The Lubrizol Corporation

Belot Pierre TotalEnergies Lubrifiants

Benn David SI Group

Bennett Trent Bisley International LLC

Berg Daniel Daubert Chemical Company

Biewer Christian Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Billings Lynn RSC Bio Solutions

Billo Dean JAX Inc

Birdwell David Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Blair Katherine Biosynthetic Technologies

Blank Edward Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Non-Member

Manufacturer Non-Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Non-Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Technical Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Blank Julie Spouse/Guest

Bodenstein Thor Engineered Lubricants

Bohn Jeff AXEL Americas, LLC

Bonds Joseph Albemarle

Bonta Jacob Valvoline Inc.

Bowden Gene Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Brandon Keyth Italmatch Chemicals

Broome Scott AOCUSA

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Broome Nicole Spouse/Guest

Brown Nilka ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Brown Ross FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Bruner Michael Ravago Chemicals North America

Buckley William Bisley International LLC

Budd Casey Lubrication Engineers, Inc.

Bunting Lindsey ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Burgett Ryan Loadmaster Lubricants, LLC

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Burgett Alyssa Spouse/Guest

Burns Raymond Lucas Oil Products

Butler Kevin Brenntag

Butler Shayna ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Campbell LaKendria Whitmore Manufacturing

Camps Ryan Deere and Company

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

ATTENDEES

Carbonera Spadari Daiane Iconic Lubrificantes S.A.

Cardy Dave Italmatch Chemicals

Carpenter Debra Battenfeld Grease & Oil Corp. of NY

Carrillo Xavier TRCC

Carroll James Schaeffer Manufacturing Co.

Cerqueira Luis Total Lubricants USA, Inc.

Chaadayeva Masha Daubert Chemical Company

Chaudhuri Kaustav Chevron Products Company

Chevreux Agathe TotalEnergy Lubrifiants

Chichester Chad Molykote by DuPont

Choi Kevin bp/Castrol

Clark Jennifer The Lubrizol Corporation

Clark Virgil AOCUSA

Clarkson Nicole Barentz North America, LLC

Cline Eric Hydrotex

Coburn Allen The Lubrizol Corporation

Coe Charles Grease Technology Solutions LLC

Coleman Jay Ergon, Inc.

Collette Gary TRCC

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Technical Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Como Kelly Spouse/Guest

Como Dave Honorary Member

Conrad Eamonn Syensqo

Corena Sarmiento Lliam Rocio Proquimsa SAS

Cottrell David Climax Molybdenum Marketing Corp.

Cowan Sandra CITGO Petroleum Corp

Cox Gordon Savant Labs

Crocker Chad S&S Chemical

Manufacturer Non-Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Crow Brenda NLGI NLGI Staff

Cruz Adriany FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Cummins John Hydrotex

Dai Zheng Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Dai Wei The Timken Company

Dailerian Nubar Desilube

Dallas Karin Afton Chemical Corporation

Dameski Victoria H.L. Blachford Ltd

Damio David Wego Chemical Group

Davis Jonathan INVISTA

Davis Christine Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

de Gala Gary Climax Molybdenum Marketing Corp.

DeBlock Wayne United Color Manufacturing, Inc.

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Technical Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Non - Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

DeBlock Karen Spouse/Guest

Deborde Lindy Advanced Graphite Powders

Delaney Kevin Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC

Supplier (New) Member

Supplier Member

Denton Victoria F&L Asia Ltd. Industry Partner

DeVore David Functional Products Inc.

Dhar Soman bp/Castrol

DiBerto David Afton Chemical Corporation

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Dicken Terry ELGI Industry Partner

DiNicola Kevin LANXESS Corporation

DiSilvestri John AOCUSA

Dixon Matthew AMSOIL Inc.

Dolan Chad Lubrication Engineers, Inc.

Donegan Joseph NCH Corporation

Dubbert Bridget Engineered Lubricants

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

ATTENDEES

Duckworth Gavin Novel Reliable Technologies

Dudley Gary GKD Consulting & Services

Dunsmoor Scott Patterson Industries Canada, A Div. of All-Weld Co.

Supplier Non-Member

Technical (New) Member

Ltd.

Supplier Member

Dunsmoor Derra Spouse/Guest

Dura Robert The Lubrizol Corporation

Ellison Curt Palmer Holland, Inc.

Erhan Selim Ergon, Inc

Esparza Damaris Tulstar Products, Inc.

Faizi Darius Tomlin Scientific, Inc.

Farhi Axel NOVITAS Chem Solutions, LLC

Fedotov Mikhail ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Feinberg Alexander Spouse/Guest

Fialka David Cofco International

Fish Gareth The Lubrizol Corporation

Fisher Jacob Van Horn Metz & Co Inc

Flores George South Coast Products Inc

Ford Monica Clariant Corporation

Ford Brandi Afton Chemical Corporation

Supplier Non-Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Foreman Jennifer NLGI NLGI Staff

Franco Victor Lubricantes de America

Frankland Mark ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Friedrich Carsten LANXESS Corporation

Funk Janeil Calgary L & G Inc.

Gabriel Dan Environmental Lubricants Manufacturing (ELM)

Galizia Anthony Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Galvez Mauricio Sea-Land Chemical Company

Gao Yutong Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Garbarino Cameron Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

Gardenier Ulf KAJO GmbH

Gardner Susan Klüber Lubrication NA LP

Garduno Emilio Proaindsa

Garg Shrey Waxpol Industries Ltd

Garmabi Alireza Klüber Lubrication NA LP

Gartner Willi King Industries, Inc.

Gates Jason Aerospace Lubricants, Inc

Gates Adam Aerospace Lubricants, Inc

Gbadamosi Muibat Calumet Branded Products, LLC

Ghanim Ali bp/Castrol

Gnann Alan Climax Molybdenum Marketing Corp.

Godwin David Engineered Lubricants

Goggans Colby Ergon, Inc.

Gou Qian The Dow Chemical Company

Grabarz James King Industries, Inc.

Graham Diane STRATCO, Inc.

Grant Tim Ideas Inc.

Graves Joel bp/Castrol

Griffin Pete American Refining Group, Inc.

Grimes John Soltex Inc.

Grives Paul East Texas Process Consulting

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Technical (New) Member

Grives Angela Spouse/Guest

Grobler Dieter KAJO GmbH

Guarino Jay MidContinental Chemical Company, Inc.

Guillen Katherine AMSOIL Inc.

Gupta Satyan Kline & Company

Hagle Kezia Molykote by DuPont

Manufacturer (New) Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Technical Member

Manufacturer Member

ATTENDEES

Hall Duane LANXESS Corporation

Hamid Sibtain Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Hannan J.R. Texas Refinery Corp

Hanrahan Brendan JAX Inc.

Hao JianDong Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Hardt John Univar Solutions

Hardy Matt Warren Oil Company, LLC

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Hardy Shannon Spouse/Guest

Harkness Douglas Dover Chemical Corporation

Harr Mark Dover Chemical Corporation

Harris Amanda King Industries, Inc.

Harteveld Peter Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Harteveld-Leow Julie Sew Ying Spouse/Guest

Haselhuhn Howard Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Hass Kelly Whitmore Manufacturing

Hegarty Zachary SONGWON Management AG

Henke Greg Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

Henley Christy Sea-Land Chemical Company

Hepp James Compass Instruments

Hernandez Jordan Brenntag

Herriotte Travon Summit Lubricants, Inc.

Herrmann Inga Ergon, Inc.

Hickman Amber ASTM International

Hills Joe STRATCO, Inc.

Hlade Toby ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Holloway Michael SGS

Honary Lou University of Northern Iowa

Hope Ken Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

Horvath Christopher FedChem

Hou Yudong Nasyn Group Inc.

Howard Jeff ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Huber Nicolas Deere and Company

Hudson Taylor Valvoline Inc.

Huffman Lauren The Dow Chemical Company

Hunt Jim TRCC

Hunter Maureen King Industries, Inc.

Hutchison Greg Phillips 66 Research Center

Imai Junichi Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Ingram Steven Whitmore Manufacturing

Isbell Tobiah CITGO Petroleum Corp

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Technical Industry Partner

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Non Member

Academia Non-Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Non-Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Jackson Robert Auburn University Academia

Janik Jack Auburn University Academia

Jark Tyler AOCUSA

Jarquin Annie Kline & Company

Jeannot Phillip Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Jebbanema Loubna Italmatch Chemicals

Jhaveri Adarsh Moly Metal LLP ~ India Chapter

Jorge Neto Augusto Fernandes Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Kanar Norm Novagard

Kantor David Sea-Land Chemical Company

Kaperick Joe Afton Chemical Corporation

Manufacturer Member

Technical Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Non-Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Kaperick Jo Anne Spouse/Guest

Kass Henrik Fluid-Bag Ltd.

Kay John STRATCO, Inc.

Kearney Hunter Advanced Graphite Powders

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier (New) Member

ATTENDEES

Keenan Martin Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Kennedy Howard H.L. Blachford Ltd

Kernizan Carl F KV Tech Consulting, LLC

Kim Hyunseog Shamrock Technologies

King Steve Environmental Lubricants Manufacturing (ELM)

Kirby Kyle Whitmore Manufacturing

Kirby Angela CITGO Petroleum Corp

Knippa Zoé Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC

Knipping Torsten Ergon, Inc.

Koike Shinji Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Technical Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Koopman Carol ELGI Industry Partner

Kowalski Konrad DMR Group SP. Z O.O.

Kriska Jeremy Tulstar Products, Inc.

Kuchta Tyler Si Group

Kumar Anoop Chevron Products Company

Supplier (New) Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Kunselman Mike Center for Quality Assurance (CQA) Industry Partner

Kusak Brian Quaker Houghton

Kuzhiyil Najeeb ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Kvasnicka Kevin Battenfeld Grease & Oil Corp. of NY

Laine Teo AXEL Christiernsson International AB

Lampton Louis Ergon, Inc.

Leckner Johan AXEL Christiernsson International AB

Lee Jason INVISTA

Lee Kenneth ExxonMobil Technology and Engineering Company

Lesinski Darren Total Lubricants USA, Inc.

LeVack Brian T.S. Moly-Lubricants, Inc

Levy Phil Almel Incorporated

Liao Victoria LANXESS Corporation

Liebig Christopher FUCHS SE

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Non-Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Lintow Rebecca STLE Industry Partner

Lisowski Sarah Calumet Branded Products, LLC

Lopez Francisco Lucas Oil Products

Lopez Maldonado Oscar NOVITAS Chem Solutions, LLC

Lorimor John Aerospace Lubricants, Inc

Lu Shiying H.L. Blachford Ltd

Ludwig Lawrence Schaeffer Manufacturing Co.

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Technical Member

Ludwig Kathryn Spouse/Guest

Lytle Greg CITGO Petroleum Corp

Maass Martin KAJO GmbH

Mackwood Wayne LANXESS

Madius Constantin AXEL Americas, LLC

Makuvek Teresa FedChem, LLC

Malinski Thomas Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

Mallory Bill KLM Group, LLC

Mancero Cecilia STRATCO, Inc.

Mangan Tim Idemitsu Lubricants America Corp

Markiz Filho Mohamad Kassem SYNERGY SOLUTIONS

Marmerstein Larisa Italmatch Chemicals

Martin Dan IMCD Group

Martin Zach Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Martin Dan IMCD Group

Martinez Ismael NSF International

Matthews Edrice Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Matthews Kimberly NCH

Mayo Allyson ChemPoint

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Associate Honorary Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Non-Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Non-Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Non-Member

Technical Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Non-Member

ATTENDEES

Mayorga Jasmine NOVITAS Chem Solutions, LLC

Supplier Member

McCoy Cathy NLGI NLGI Staff

McCullough Chris ASTM International

McCune Devon The Lubrizol Corporation

McDaniel Elena Battenfeld Grease & Oil Corp. of NY

McGinnis Matthew Daubert Chemical Company

Technical Industry Partner

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

McGinnis Anne Spouse/Guest

McGovern Matt CITGO Petroleum Corp

McHugh Jessica FedChem

McLeod Alex The Lubrizol Corporation

Mecimore Greg TRCC

Medlen Beth Morgan Distributing Inc

Mehdi Syed Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Mendez Olga Proquimsa S.A.S

Meyer Andrea Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC

Miao Zhongshan Italmatch Chemicals

Miller Matt Palmer Holland, Inc.

Mills Sean ProSys Servo Filling Systems

Mistry Anuj FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Mistry Neera FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Mistry Meena Spouse/Guest

Mistry Kunjal Spouse/Guest

Mitchell Brenda Climax Molybdenum Marketing Corp.

Mitchell Mary LANXESS Corporation

Miyagawa Akira Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Molina Eva Penthol LLC

Montaner Federico Univar Solutions

Montefalcon Giovanna Janina Petron Corporation

Moore Matthew Primrose Oil Company, Inc.

Morris Dwaine Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Mowwlanazada Habeeba Tomlin Scientific, Inc.

Mulkern Robert FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Mulvihill Mark Lone Star Grease & Lubricants LLC

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier (New) Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Non-Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Mulvihill Lesley Spouse/Guest

Murphy Edward Valvoline Inc.

Myer Kolby Calumet Specialty Products Partners

Myrtaj-Nicieza Romina Asbury Carbons

Nagasawa Yoshiyuki Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Nagore Gabriel Lubricantes de America

Navaratnam Ramesh Patech Fine Chemicals Co. Ltd

Nelson William Elementis Specialties

Niedbalski Richard Schaeffer Manufacturing Co.

Nolan Kevin TRCC

Norbert Roberta CSN

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Non-Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Technical Non-Member

Norwood Ben NLGI / Quicksilver Studios NLGI Staff

Nowak Thomas Battenfeld Grease & Oil Corp. of NY

Manufacturer Member

Nowak Nancy Spouse/Guest

Nuernberger Conner Schaeffer Manufacturing Co.

Nuzzo Keith Syn-Tech Ltd

Nyholm Mark AMSOIL Inc.

O’Brien Jordan LANXESS Corporation

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

O’Halloran Crystal NLGI NLGI Staff

Oliva Benjamin Lubricantes de America

Ong Pang Lin Infineum USA L.P.

Ouellette Paula Harrison Manufacturing Co. Pty Ltd.

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

ATTENDEES

Pack David Lone Star Grease & Lubricants LLC

Pallay Krista Hydrotex

Paquette Troy Environmental Lubricants Manufacturing (ELM)

Parrish Al Parlube Solutions

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Technical Member

Parrish Patsy Spouse/Guest

Pasquarelli Jesse CITGO Petroleum Corp

Patel Thakor Calumet Branded Products, LLC

Patrillo Erica Afton Chemical Corporation

Paul Jonathan AXEL Americas, LLC

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Peltier Ana Spouse/Guest

Petraroia Mark TotalEnergy Lubrifiants

Pighin Aldo H.L. Blachford Ltd

Plummer Robert Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Polara Rishi The University of Akron Academia

Pondicherry Kartik Anton Paar GmbH

Porsgaard Pelle Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Potikyan Karen AOCUSA

Poyta Kyle Quaker Houghton

Prasnicki Miles Loadmaster Lubricants, LLC

Precup Michael Fluid-Bag Ltd.

Pritchett Kevin Climax Molybdenum Marketing Corp.

Prizgint Robert Quaker Houghton

Quarm Liz MOL-LUB Ltd.

Quinn Melissa bp/Castrol

Racke David Lucas Oil Products

Raiyn Mojtaba Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Rajala Scott Idemitsu Lubricants America Corp.

Ramirez Susana Comercial Roshfrans

Rao Paul Elementis Specialties

Rastoka John Acme-Hardesty Co.

Repko Colin Calumet Branded Products, LLC

Rice Douglas CITGO Petroleum Corp

Technical Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Rice Kimberly Spouse/Guest

Riedel Paul AMSOIL Inc.

Rightmire Nicholas Loadmaster Lubricants, LLC

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Rightmire Kelly Spouse/Guest

Rivello James BG Products, Inc.

Marketer / Distributor Member

Roberts Denise NLGI NLGI Staff

Robinson John Fluid-Bag Ltd.

Rodriguez Yair Ergon, Inc.

Rojas Otto Lubrication Engineers, Inc.

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Rosas Mary Spouse/Guest

Rotrakarn Dusadee Siam Lubricant Co., Ltd

Manufacturer Member

Rucker Chris A6 Productions / NLGI NLGI Staff

Ruth Michael Storchem Inc.

Saad George Thames River Chemical

Sabah Behshad Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Sachdeva Siddharth Trinity Lubes & Greases

Sachdeva Sudhir Kumar Siddharth Grease & Lubes Pvt Ltd

Saldana Alex Molykote by DuPont

Salling Jo Nell T.S. Moly-Lubricants, Inc

Sanchez Maria De Jesus Quimica Liposoluble, S.A. de C.V.

Sander John Lubrication Engineers, Inc.

Sanders Aaron Daubert Chemical Company

Sands Stuart ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Member - India Chapter

Member - India Chapter

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

ATTENDEES

Savaiano Adele Biosynthetic Technologies

Sawyer Wayne SONGWON Management AG

Sayanna Eltepu Standard Greases & Specialties Pvt Ltd

Schenkenberger Chris The Lubrizol Corporation

Schoepfle Roger Azelis L&MF US

Schroeder Thomas AXEL Americas, LLC

Sdregas Chris Tomlin Scientific, Inc.

Seger Mike Palmer Holland, Inc.

Seki Keiji TOYO Chemicals

Sellers Mark TRCC

Sexton Joe STRATCO, Inc.

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Industry Partner

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Non-Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Sexton Maddie Spouse/Guest

Shafto Simona Koehler Instrument Company, Inc.

Shah Rajesh Koehler Instrument Company, Inc.

Sharrer Ryan Afton Chemical Corporation

Shawky Sherif ExxonMobil Technology & Engineering Co

Shea Kelly Ergon, Inc.

Shearer Skip Syn-Tech Ltd

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Shearer Margaret Spouse/Guest

Sheffield Joshua Arcadium Lithium

Shiller Paul FirstPower Group, LLC

Silver Eric Infineum USA L.P.

Simpson Robb American Refining Group, Inc.

Sims Kayla Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

Singla Anju Dover Chemical Corporation

Sirianni Eric INVISTA

Smith Robert S&S Chemical

Smith Matt Univar Solutions

Smith II Robert S&S Chemical

Smorch Neil Lubriplate Lubricants Company

Smothers Adam Aerospace Lubricants, Inc

Snodgrass Mick Tomlin Scientific, Inc.

Soares Mariana Iconic Lubrificantes S.A.

Sorenson Elyse AMSOIL Inc.

Spilioti Eirini Gehring-Montgomery Inc.

St. Aubin Jeffrey AXEL Americas, LLC

Stafutti Robert LANXESS Corporation

Staggs Tyler Chevron Phillips Chemical Company

Stelly Brenda Oil Center Research, LLC

Stelly Michael Oil Center Research, LLC

Stewart Rick Loadmaster Lubricants, LLC

Stewart Bryan Penthol LLC

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Non-Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Author/Instructor

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier (New) Member

Stuckrath Tracy Thrive! Meetings & Events / NLGI NLGI Staff

Stureson Johan AXEL Christiernsson International

Sturm Doug AMSOIL Inc.

Sun Xianchen FUCHS Lubricants Co.

Szatkowski Michael Cadillac Oil Co.

Tann Michael Acme-Hardesty Co.

Taylor Susan Calgary L & G Inc.

Thomas Scott Southern Petroleum Laboratories

Thomsen Bernie Afton Chemical Corporation

Tingey James POLARIS Laboratories

Toberman John JAX Inc.

Tóth Béla MOL LUB Ltd

Traugott Monica Soltex Inc.

Manufacturer Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Marketer / Distributor Member

Manufacturer (New) Member

Supplier Member

ATTENDEES

Truong My Hang The Lubrizol Corporation

Tsutsui Daisuke Kyodo Yushi Co., Ltd.

Turner David CITGO Petroleum Corp

Turpin Nathan Shamrock Technologies

Tuszynski Bill The Unami Group, LLC

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Technical Mem

Ukrazhenko Andrey NLGI NLGI Staff

VanBergen William Savant Labs

Vasely Vincent Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC

Veenstra Terrence Petro-Canada Lubricants / HF Sinclair

Velazquez Areli Lubricantes de America

Vence Jim Italmatch Chemicals

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Supplier Member

Vickress Neil Patterson Industries Canada, A Div. of All-Weld Co. Ltd.

Supplier Member

Vickress Darlene Spouse/Guest

Villard Ashley Oil Center Research, LLC

Manufacturer (New) Member

Villard Brice Spouse/Guest

Vyas Kapil Standard Greases & Specialties Private Ltd

Manufacturer Member

Vyas Kinjal Spouse/Guest

Walker Doug Quaker Houghton

Walker David Aerospace Lubricants, Inc

Wang Hui Calumet Branded Products, LLC

Waynick J. Andrew NCH Corporation

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Manufacturer Member

Wegter-Jark Rachel Spouse/Guest

Wei Liwen NOVITAS Chem Solutions, LLC

West Cloe Soltex Inc.

Wilhelm Adam American Refining Group, Inc.

Will Lisa Calgary L & G Inc

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Supplier Member

Manufacturer Member

2024 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

PRESIDENT

Anoop Kumar Chevron Products Company, a division of Chevron U.S.A. Inc.

VICE PRESIDENT

Wayne Mackwood LANXESS Corporation

SECRETARY

Tom Schroeder AXEL Americas, LLC

TREASURER

Chad Chichester Molykote by DuPont

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT

Jim Hunt TRCC

TECHNICAL COMMITTEE CHAIR

David Turner CITGO Petroleum Corporation

DIRECTORS

David Cardy Italmatch Chemicals

Chuck R. Coe Grease Technology Solutions LLC

Muibat Gbadamosi Calumet Branded Products, LLC

Maureen Hunter King Industries, Inc.

Tyler Jark AOCUSA

Joe Kaperick Afton Chemical Corporation

Matthew McGinnis Daubert Chemical Company

Dwaine (Greg) Morris Shell Global Solutions (US) Inc.

John Sander Lubrication Engineers, Inc.

Simona Shafto Koehler Instrument Company, Inc.

Joshua Sheffield Arcadium Lithium

Ray Zhang Vanderbilt Chemicals, LLC

NLGI COMMITTEES

MARKETING COMMITTEE

The Marketing Committee creates awareness of NLGI, events, education, certifications, and other offerings by creating marketing campaigns, promoting events, creating advertising, and posting on social media platforms.

MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE

The Membership Committee focuses on membership growth by recruiting new member companies including international expansion. Additional focuses of the Membership Committee include member benefits, membership value and retaining current member companies. The membership committee also offers ambassadors for volunteers who are not able to commit as a full-time committee member.

ANNUAL MEETING COMMITTEE

The Annual Meeting Committee serves as the advisory group for the Annual Meeting including selecting speakers, award recipients, solidifying technical sessions and direction on the site selection process.

EDUCATION COMMITTEE

The Education Committee focuses on the overall education strategy for NLGI education including education courses and the certified lubricating grease specialist certification.

*Consists of four sub-groups

• Basic Lubricating Grease Course – Basic Course focuses on fine-tuning the Basic Grease Courses.

• Advanced Lubricating Grease Course – Advanced Courses focuses on fine-tuning Advanced Lubricating Grease Courses.

• Hands-On Training – Hands-On Training focuses on planning and execution of the training.

• Certified Lubricating Grease Specialist (CLGS) – Must be CLGS certified to participate on this committee. Focuses on the test given at the Annual Meeting.

SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE

The sustainability committee focuses on identifying and measuring footprint, handprint and life-cycle analysis, getting regular updates from experts in the field of sustainability and environmental, health and safety (EHS) implications in the grease industry

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NLGI COMMITTEES

EDITORIAL COMMITTEE

The Editorial Committee collaborates on content circulated to NLGI members and non-members including The NLGI Spokesman, and Ask the Expert Q&A.*Consists of three sub-groups

• The NLGI Spokesman – Improve content and readership for The NLGI Spokesman.

• Editorial Review – Peer review process for technical papers submitted in The NLGI Spokesman.

• Ask-the-Expert – Answer inquiries submitted to NLGI HQ.

TECHNICAL COMMITTEE

The Technical Committee focuses on technical aspects within the industry and organization. The technical committee is comprised of two main areas – technical and research. The technical group focuses on NLGI’s certification marks, working groups, HPM Steering committee and the Annual Grease Production Survey. The research group focuses on annual research grants and academic outreach. *Consists of five sub-groups

• Certification Marks – HPM, GC-LB, GC & LB certification marks

• Working Groups – Bio-Based, Food Grade, Grease Specification and Grease Particle working groups

• Production Survey – Annual survey provided complimentary to NLGI members containing an array of industry information, including global grease production.

• HPM Steering Committee – Plan and execute on marketing efforts toward HPM.

• Research Grants/Academic Outreach – Seeks to strengthen the grease industry by fostering relationships with universities containing tribology programs and evolving the organization’s research grant program.

WOMEN IN GREASE INTEREST NETWORK

WIGIN is committed to educating, promoting, advancing, and sustaining industry experts in the lubricating grease industry while emphasizing the need for diversity in management and leadership. This is accomplished by connecting professionals within the industry through networking events, educational workshops and philanthropic endeavors.

91st ANNUAL MEETING DISCLAIMER

Your registration for the 91st Annual Meeting acknowledges your acceptance of the following code of conduct for all events and activities at the Annual Meeting. NLGI values the engagement of everyone involved in the Annual Meeting, and NLGI is committed to ensuring a safe event and enjoyable experience for everyone.

To that end, you are to act in a professional and courteous manner to all attendees, speakers, presenters, and staff throughout the Annual Meeting, including hotel staff. NLGI does not tolerate harassment, discrimination, or other unwelcome or unlawful behavior based on anyone’s race; sex; national origin; religion (or lack thereof); age; ethnicity; color; gender; sexual orientation; marital, civil union, or domestic partnership status; physical, mental, or sensory disability; national, social, or ethnic origin; pregnancy; family or parental status; and other protected categories.

“Harassment” includes but is not limited to: offensive verbal comments, including to speakers during presentations; inappropriate, unwanted, and/or unsolicited physical contact; sexual propositions or posted/texted sexual images; unwelcome sexual attention or comments; off-color or obscene jokes, remarks, or gestures; any other words or conduct of a sexual nature that makes the recipient or observer uncomfortable; deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following; sustained disruption of talks or other events; unwelcome photography or recording; and, advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.

NLGI takes seriously any violation of this Code of Conduct. Accordingly, attendees at the Annual Meeting who violate this Code of Conduct can, in the judgment and discretion of NLGI, be expelled from the Annual Meeting, without refund if applicable; can be prevented from attending certain events at the Annual Meeting; and can be barred from future NLGI meetings after notification and an opportunity to respond, and review by the NLGI Board of Directors.

If you are being harassed, observe someone else being harassed, or have concerns about potential violations of this Code of Conduct, please notify NLGI staff immediately. In the case of an in-person emergency, call 911 or hotel security, whichever feels safest for you. NLGI will take all appropriate action to protect anyone affected by violations of this Code of Conduct.

All reports made to NLGI staff are confidential. If NLGI staff takes a personal report from you, they may need to involve others to ensure that your report is properly managed and that the appropriate action is taken to protect you or others, but all efforts will be made to keep your report confidential. NLGI will only involve law enforcement or hotel security at a victim’s request. NLGI expressly disclaims any liability arising out of your consumption of alcoholic beverages in conjunction with the Annual Meeting. You are responsible for your own well-being. NLGI expressly disclaims liability for any acts or omissions of attendees resulting from excessive drinking, recklessness, or negligence on the part of any participant(s). NLGI reserves the right to revoke your registration without refund at any time for breach of the foregoing.

As a registered attendee or guest of the Annual Meeting, you authorize NLGI to photograph your image as a participant in the Annual Meeting sessions and events. Use of the photographs will be limited to NLGI and for future meeting promotional purposes only.

Attendee hereby assumes all risks, and accepts sole responsibility, for any injury (including, but not limited to, personal injury, disability, and death), illness, damage, loss, claim, liability, or expense, of any kind, that Attendee may experience or incur in connection with attending the Annual Meeting. Attendee hereby releases, covenants not to sue, discharges, and holds harmless NLGI, its employees, agents, and representatives, of and from any such claims, including all liabilities, claims, actions, damages, costs, or expenses of any kind arising out of or relating thereto.

Specifically relating to the global COVID-19 pandemic, you acknowledge the highly contagious nature of COVID-19 and voluntarily assume the risk of exposure or infection by attending the Annual Meeting, and that such exposure or infection may result in personal injury, illness, disability, and/or death to attendee. You further understand that the risk of becoming exposed to or infected by COVID-19 at the Annual Meeting may result from the actions, omissions, or negligence of others who may attend the Annual Meeting or their families, colleagues, or others with whom they may have contact. Accordingly, you understand and agree that this release includes any claims based on the actions, omissions, or negligence of NLGI, its employees, agents, and representatives, whether a COVID-19 infection occurs before, during, or after participation in the Annual Meeting. If you test positive for COVID-19 during the meeting or within seven days after the meeting, please contact NLGI HQ.

In addition to all other rules and regulations relating to the Attendee’s attendance at the Annual Meeting, you agree to comply with all COVID-related procedures that may be implemented by NLGI and/or the Hotel, including, but not limited to, mask-wearing and social distancing requirements and restrictions on certain activities that carry higher COVID-related risk, in order to protect as much as possible, the health and safety of all attendees.

FUTURE NLGI ANNUAL MEETINGS