16 Vegetable-based lubricants are gaining worldwide support. In Germany s Black Forest region, environmental protection laws require farm machinery to use only biodegradable fuels and lubricants. The new law provides introductory market support for the demonstration of seed oils. Research Program is developing BioSOY, a vegetable oil for the replacement of hydraulic fluid in heavy machinery. Another of ABIL s products, Soy Trak, is a soy- based, biodegradable grease that can be applied to railroad tracks to reduce friction between the train s wheels and the rails.
Friction creates drag, reducing fuel efficiency.
By using lubricants, fuel efficiency increases by between seven and 17 percent, while equipment wear decreases. The grease was recently tested on about 300 miles of Iowa s railroad track owned by Iowa Interstate Railroad, Ltd. Used as a replacement for conventional petroleum-based products, Soy Trak minimizes environmental threats associated with seepage of grease into water and soil. ABIL will supply about 200 gallons of the grease each month to Iowa Interstate during the test period. The national market potential for this product is enormous the United States has about 4.5 billion gallons of the petroleum-based transformer oil in use today.