" 100 % Synthetic, exclusive of carrier oil ".
The "100% Synthetic" relates to the Base Oil or Base Stock, it and only it (the Base Stock) is synthetically made. In case of Mobil 1, it was originally PAO (Poly-alpha-olefin).
The "exclusive of carrier oil" means in English that the Carrier or the Process Oil that is used to "carry" the additives is not synthetic oil and therefore, the final product (Motor Oil)
is NOT 100% Synthetic, even though the Base Oil is 100% Synthetic.
GOT THAT ?
Well then, what does Mobil (now ExxonMobil) have to say about that ?
Q: Is Mobil 1 a fully synthetic oil?
Yes, it’s 100% synthetic. The base stocks used in blending Mobil 1 are all "chemically constructed" instead of being simply segregated out of crude oil like conventional mineral oils.
Q: Then why does it say it contains a petroleum carrier for additives?
All motor oils contain additives that provide extra protection against wear, corrosion and engine deposits. These additives are usually high molecular weight materials – sometimes even solids. Conventional carrier oil is used to make these additives soluble. All motor oils will contain some of this carrier oil, usually only amounting to a small percentage of the finished product.
Source of above Questions and Answers is www.mobil,com and Mobil 1 promotional literature from 1999.
Q: How a Fully Synthetic oil differs from Conventional Oil ?
Conventional motor oils are refined from crude oil that has been pumped from the ground. While petroleum refining is an advanced science, naturally occurring components, such as sulfur, reactive hydrocarbons and other materials, can never be completely removed from petroleum, and thus may end up in conventional motor oil base stocks.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, providing the highest performance and protection level, are fully synthetic motor oils like Mobil 1 with SuperSyn family of lubricants, the leading synthetic motor oil and the "official Motor Oil of NASCAR".
Fully synthetic lubricants are formulated in several ways, using high-performance synthetic base oils. These products are produced either through a chemical reaction called "synthesis", severe refining or other complex chemical processes that yield a molecular uniformity and degree of purity that is impossible to achieve through normal refining process.
Source of above Question and Answer is NASCAR PERFORMANCE - Summer 2003 from article originated by ExxonMobil and titled "Getting up to Speed about SYNTHETIC LUBRICANTS".
AHA !!!
Are you clear on the subject NOW?
Perhaps a small question still lurks on your mind, how small a "small percentage" is?
Well, for that we have to go to a company like Infineum that produces the additive packages such a PARANOX 5043 and PARANOX 5510 for synthetic lubricants.
The active ingredients are 1.94% to 4.07% by Mass (weight) the balance is Petroleum Oil.
That is about 98% or 96% of the "Additive Package" in ready to blend form is Petroleum Oil.
They (Infineum) recommend treat rate for FULLY FORMULATED lubricant (Motor Oil) of 10 to 20% of the finished product.
NOW for you MATH WIZARDS:
If 100% of the Base Oil is 100% Synthetic;
If 98% to 96% of the "Additive Package is Petroleum";
If 10 to 20% of the finished product is the Additive Package;
Then, how many % of Petroleum and how many % of Synthetic are in the finished Motor Oil?
SOLUTION:
When the treat rate is 10% and the Additive Package contains 2% of active ingredients,
then the finished product will be 90% Synthetic with 9.8% Petroleum and 0.2% of additives.
When the treat rate is 20% and the Additive Package contains 4% of the active ingredients,
then the finished product will be 80% Synthetic with 19.2% Petroleum and 0.8% of additives.
The "small percentage" (according to Mobil) actually is 9.8% to 19.2%.
Many investors would be thrilled to get such a "small percentage" return on their money !!
(Just for the record, the average dividends for Mobil and Exxon over last 20 years have been in 2% to 4% range, and they jointly term this as "significant" return on Shareholders’ Equity in their Annual Reports).
OK then "100% Synthetic Motor Oil" is not really "100% Synthetic Motor Oil", but it is perfectly OK to say that it is 100% Synthetic Motor Oil, because the Base Stock is 100% Synthetic and that is what you really mean when the Motor Oil contains as much as 20% of Petroleum, because the Petroleum is not the Base Oil but the Carrier Oil for the Additives !!!
Now if YOU do not understand that, as most people do not, well that is just way too bad.
After all you just might not be willing to pay so much more for Synthetic Motor Oil if you knew it was not "100% Synthetic", or would you ?
Well, you probably are (paying too much)!
Almost Synthetic is Synthetic even when it is Petroleum.
Well, if you think that Mobil or (ExxonMobil now) is less than honest, or even down right deceptive, that is not the worst of it.
Many other brands of Synthetics (Shell, Castrol, Amsoil, etc.) are NOT fully "synthetic" at all, at least by the definition used for years by chemists in all chemical companies around the World.
Some years ago SHELL in Europe and specifically in then West Germany introduced Motor Oils that were manufactured from UHVI Petroleum Base stock that although made from conventional crude oil, was subjected to additional processing not common on "normal" or "typical" Base Oil production. These (UHVI = Ultra High Viscosity Index) Base Stock containing Motor Oils were labeled by SHELL as "Synthetic".
Companies like MOTUL, MOBIL, AGIP in their respective markets did not like that labeling one bit, because the SHELL "synthetic" products were sold for substantially less then their own Brands of "Synthetic" Labeled products.
So years of lawsuits court orders, appeals, contra-suits clogged the courts of several European countries. At different times and in different countries contrary decisions or judgements were made. What was "synthetic" in one country on one day was "not synthetic" in another country at the same time. A real confusion for a region of globe that aimed to "unify" in the near future and become one great continent of "EURO".
What finally evolved from all this confusion was that the label term "Synthetic" is a marketing term, and therefore it is up to the "marketer" of the oil, to define what "synthetic" is.
AHA !!!
So now anytime you subject conventional petroleum oil to any unconventional process or reaction, irrespective of if it works (improves) or not the Base Oil, you can for all practical purposes call it "synthetic" i.e., Man-made.
SAE which had in its lubricant specifications not only definitions of what constitutes a "synthetic" but also a list of specific chemicals used as lubricants that were considered "synthetic".
Although SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) is US based organization, it aims at Global reach, and having one standard in the USA and yet another in most of Europe was deemed as bad as having English and Metric standards of measurements (at the same time).
The decision was made to go along with Europe (after all Metric is better), and as a result all reference to "synthetic" in respect to lubricants was deleted from ALL future SAE publications of SAE Standards relating to Lubricants.
Since SAE is a non-profit organization of Engineers, it had no desire nor financial might to involve itself in never ending lawsuits with mighty oil and chemical companies, so the simple "deletion" of all references to "synthetic" was perhaps the best and easiest decision.
When opportunity is there, it is only natural that some one will seize it.
It was CASTROL with their Syntec® Synthetic Motor Oil, which when first introduced up until December 1997 it was formulated with PAO sourced from Mobil.
In January 1998 CASTROL started to use much cheaper hydroprocessed petroleum base oils from SHELL. Mobil lost the opportunity to sell PAO to CASTROL.
Mobil Oil complained to National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, which in April 1999 finally ruled in CASTROL favor, specifically allowing Syntec® Motor Oil made from SHELL XHVI slack wax stream to be sold and promoted as "synthetic".
To celebrate the victory, CASTROL Company spokesperson said:
"CASTROL is proud to be a major worldwide provider of synthetic formulated lubricants, and looks forward to continued participation in this exciting market. CASTROL is committed to upgrading its products and producing the highest quality synthetic engine oils. We will continue to explore ways to ensure that Syntec® remains a leading performer in the synthetic category"
WOW, someone missed their calling to be a Politician !!!
So now "synthetic" can be marketed as "synthetic" even if it is not a "synthetic"!
A slight clue that as good as "synthetic" is really not all that good, can be found on www.castrol.com , when the recommended oil change interval for CASTROL Syntec® Fully Synthetic Motor Oil is: 3,000 miles or 3 months – just the same as for ordinary conventional Petroleum Motor Oil.
A PENNZOIL with PENNZANE® is not any better and PENNZOIL claims are downright deceptive. The PENNZANE® which is touted as "developed for and used by NASA" has bee actually developed for used in vacuum pumps, and computer drives. It was never intended for or ever used in any engine! PENNZANE® in its pure form costs about $400.00 per US quarts.
It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that in the Consumer version of the "synthetic" motor oil that sells for under $4.00 there is about a drop of PENNZANE® in 5 Gallons !
The Back Label of PENNZOIL "Synthetic" with PENNZANE® also instructs the user to: "change motor oil EVERY 3,000 miles for best performance" !
Why then it costs four times as much conventional Petroleum Motor Oil if it is not all that much better, and definitely does not last in service any longer?
Someone has to PAY extra premium for the "synthetic" on the label, even if the content is not "synthetic".
The "100% Synthetic" relates to the Base Oil or Base Stock, it and only it (the Base Stock) is synthetically made. In case of Mobil 1, it was originally PAO (Poly-alpha-olefin).
The "exclusive of carrier oil" means in English that the Carrier or the Process Oil that is used to "carry" the additives is not synthetic oil and therefore, the final product (Motor Oil)
is NOT 100% Synthetic, even though the Base Oil is 100% Synthetic.
GOT THAT ?
Well then, what does Mobil (now ExxonMobil) have to say about that ?
Q: Is Mobil 1 a fully synthetic oil?
Yes, it’s 100% synthetic. The base stocks used in blending Mobil 1 are all "chemically constructed" instead of being simply segregated out of crude oil like conventional mineral oils.
Q: Then why does it say it contains a petroleum carrier for additives?
All motor oils contain additives that provide extra protection against wear, corrosion and engine deposits. These additives are usually high molecular weight materials – sometimes even solids. Conventional carrier oil is used to make these additives soluble. All motor oils will contain some of this carrier oil, usually only amounting to a small percentage of the finished product.
Source of above Questions and Answers is www.mobil,com and Mobil 1 promotional literature from 1999.
Q: How a Fully Synthetic oil differs from Conventional Oil ?
Conventional motor oils are refined from crude oil that has been pumped from the ground. While petroleum refining is an advanced science, naturally occurring components, such as sulfur, reactive hydrocarbons and other materials, can never be completely removed from petroleum, and thus may end up in conventional motor oil base stocks.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, providing the highest performance and protection level, are fully synthetic motor oils like Mobil 1 with SuperSyn family of lubricants, the leading synthetic motor oil and the "official Motor Oil of NASCAR".
Fully synthetic lubricants are formulated in several ways, using high-performance synthetic base oils. These products are produced either through a chemical reaction called "synthesis", severe refining or other complex chemical processes that yield a molecular uniformity and degree of purity that is impossible to achieve through normal refining process.
Source of above Question and Answer is NASCAR PERFORMANCE - Summer 2003 from article originated by ExxonMobil and titled "Getting up to Speed about SYNTHETIC LUBRICANTS".
AHA !!!
Are you clear on the subject NOW?
Perhaps a small question still lurks on your mind, how small a "small percentage" is?
Well, for that we have to go to a company like Infineum that produces the additive packages such a PARANOX 5043 and PARANOX 5510 for synthetic lubricants.
The active ingredients are 1.94% to 4.07% by Mass (weight) the balance is Petroleum Oil.
That is about 98% or 96% of the "Additive Package" in ready to blend form is Petroleum Oil.
They (Infineum) recommend treat rate for FULLY FORMULATED lubricant (Motor Oil) of 10 to 20% of the finished product.
NOW for you MATH WIZARDS:
If 100% of the Base Oil is 100% Synthetic;
If 98% to 96% of the "Additive Package is Petroleum";
If 10 to 20% of the finished product is the Additive Package;
Then, how many % of Petroleum and how many % of Synthetic are in the finished Motor Oil?
SOLUTION:
When the treat rate is 10% and the Additive Package contains 2% of active ingredients,
then the finished product will be 90% Synthetic with 9.8% Petroleum and 0.2% of additives.
When the treat rate is 20% and the Additive Package contains 4% of the active ingredients,
then the finished product will be 80% Synthetic with 19.2% Petroleum and 0.8% of additives.
The "small percentage" (according to Mobil) actually is 9.8% to 19.2%.
Many investors would be thrilled to get such a "small percentage" return on their money !!
(Just for the record, the average dividends for Mobil and Exxon over last 20 years have been in 2% to 4% range, and they jointly term this as "significant" return on Shareholders’ Equity in their Annual Reports).
OK then "100% Synthetic Motor Oil" is not really "100% Synthetic Motor Oil", but it is perfectly OK to say that it is 100% Synthetic Motor Oil, because the Base Stock is 100% Synthetic and that is what you really mean when the Motor Oil contains as much as 20% of Petroleum, because the Petroleum is not the Base Oil but the Carrier Oil for the Additives !!!
Now if YOU do not understand that, as most people do not, well that is just way too bad.
After all you just might not be willing to pay so much more for Synthetic Motor Oil if you knew it was not "100% Synthetic", or would you ?
Well, you probably are (paying too much)!
Almost Synthetic is Synthetic even when it is Petroleum.
Well, if you think that Mobil or (ExxonMobil now) is less than honest, or even down right deceptive, that is not the worst of it.
Many other brands of Synthetics (Shell, Castrol, Amsoil, etc.) are NOT fully "synthetic" at all, at least by the definition used for years by chemists in all chemical companies around the World.
Some years ago SHELL in Europe and specifically in then West Germany introduced Motor Oils that were manufactured from UHVI Petroleum Base stock that although made from conventional crude oil, was subjected to additional processing not common on "normal" or "typical" Base Oil production. These (UHVI = Ultra High Viscosity Index) Base Stock containing Motor Oils were labeled by SHELL as "Synthetic".
Companies like MOTUL, MOBIL, AGIP in their respective markets did not like that labeling one bit, because the SHELL "synthetic" products were sold for substantially less then their own Brands of "Synthetic" Labeled products.
So years of lawsuits court orders, appeals, contra-suits clogged the courts of several European countries. At different times and in different countries contrary decisions or judgements were made. What was "synthetic" in one country on one day was "not synthetic" in another country at the same time. A real confusion for a region of globe that aimed to "unify" in the near future and become one great continent of "EURO".
What finally evolved from all this confusion was that the label term "Synthetic" is a marketing term, and therefore it is up to the "marketer" of the oil, to define what "synthetic" is.
AHA !!!
So now anytime you subject conventional petroleum oil to any unconventional process or reaction, irrespective of if it works (improves) or not the Base Oil, you can for all practical purposes call it "synthetic" i.e., Man-made.
SAE which had in its lubricant specifications not only definitions of what constitutes a "synthetic" but also a list of specific chemicals used as lubricants that were considered "synthetic".
Although SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) is US based organization, it aims at Global reach, and having one standard in the USA and yet another in most of Europe was deemed as bad as having English and Metric standards of measurements (at the same time).
The decision was made to go along with Europe (after all Metric is better), and as a result all reference to "synthetic" in respect to lubricants was deleted from ALL future SAE publications of SAE Standards relating to Lubricants.
Since SAE is a non-profit organization of Engineers, it had no desire nor financial might to involve itself in never ending lawsuits with mighty oil and chemical companies, so the simple "deletion" of all references to "synthetic" was perhaps the best and easiest decision.
When opportunity is there, it is only natural that some one will seize it.
It was CASTROL with their Syntec® Synthetic Motor Oil, which when first introduced up until December 1997 it was formulated with PAO sourced from Mobil.
In January 1998 CASTROL started to use much cheaper hydroprocessed petroleum base oils from SHELL. Mobil lost the opportunity to sell PAO to CASTROL.
Mobil Oil complained to National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, which in April 1999 finally ruled in CASTROL favor, specifically allowing Syntec® Motor Oil made from SHELL XHVI slack wax stream to be sold and promoted as "synthetic".
To celebrate the victory, CASTROL Company spokesperson said:
"CASTROL is proud to be a major worldwide provider of synthetic formulated lubricants, and looks forward to continued participation in this exciting market. CASTROL is committed to upgrading its products and producing the highest quality synthetic engine oils. We will continue to explore ways to ensure that Syntec® remains a leading performer in the synthetic category"
WOW, someone missed their calling to be a Politician !!!
So now "synthetic" can be marketed as "synthetic" even if it is not a "synthetic"!
A slight clue that as good as "synthetic" is really not all that good, can be found on www.castrol.com , when the recommended oil change interval for CASTROL Syntec® Fully Synthetic Motor Oil is: 3,000 miles or 3 months – just the same as for ordinary conventional Petroleum Motor Oil.
A PENNZOIL with PENNZANE® is not any better and PENNZOIL claims are downright deceptive. The PENNZANE® which is touted as "developed for and used by NASA" has bee actually developed for used in vacuum pumps, and computer drives. It was never intended for or ever used in any engine! PENNZANE® in its pure form costs about $400.00 per US quarts.
It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that in the Consumer version of the "synthetic" motor oil that sells for under $4.00 there is about a drop of PENNZANE® in 5 Gallons !
The Back Label of PENNZOIL "Synthetic" with PENNZANE® also instructs the user to: "change motor oil EVERY 3,000 miles for best performance" !
Why then it costs four times as much conventional Petroleum Motor Oil if it is not all that much better, and definitely does not last in service any longer?
Someone has to PAY extra premium for the "synthetic" on the label, even if the content is not "synthetic".
