Shell Lubricants, one of the world’s leaders in lubricants technology and innovation, has added a state-of-the-art lubricant to its high-quality Shell Tellus hydraulic oil range that could help increase the energy efficiency of hydraulic systems. Shell Tellus EE, formulated in response to customers’ concerns over energy usage and associated costs, has been shown to help companies reduce the energy consumption of their hydraulic machinery by an average of 8 percent* while also providing exceptional equipment protection and the capability of extending oil maintenance intervals.
Shell Tellus EE is Shell Lubricants’ first synthetic hydraulic fluid that has been specifically designed to help improve the energy efficiency of the machinery in which it is used. The fluid contains a unique and patented additive technology, and has undergone extensive laboratory tests and field trials that have demonstrated its ability to help improve a machine’s energy efficiency. With hydraulics being at the core of many production processes, Shell Tellus EE has the potential to contribute to the goal of reducing an organization’s energy costs.
“Energy costs will continue to represent a significant part of an industrial organization’s operating overhead for the foreseeable future,” said Dennis Woodley, Shell hydraulics product application specialist. “As a result, investing in a hydraulic lubricant designed to both help improve the energy efficiency of the machinery in which it is used and reduce the maintenance costs makes good sense from a commercial perspective.”
While some companies focus on individual elements of a hydraulic system when designing their lubricants, Shell Lubricants has used sophisticated fluid mechanics modelling to understand the different sources of energy loss in the system as a whole. This information has then been used to help to develop a fluid with a balance of physical, and chemical properties that can help reduce energy loss throughout the system without compromising the protection and long equipment life expected by its users.
“When developing Shell Tellus EE, it was essential that the lubricant’s ability to contribute towards a machine’s energy efficiency was combined with the high performance characteristics expected from a Shell Tellus product,” Woodley said. “For example, Shell Tellus EE exceeds the maximum test duration of 10,000 hours in the industry TOST* test used to assess the oil life of hydraulic fluids, as well as demonstrates wear levels in hydraulic pump tests way below the levels often set by industry standards or certain OEM limits.”
Shell Lubricants is the world’s leading finished lubricants marketer and is investing heavily in research and development of innovative technology with the goal of delivering value to customers through superior protection and efficiency.
Shell Tellus EE is one example of this goal and has delivered tangible value to end-users. Shell Tellus EE is approved by or meets the requirements of leading manufacturers of hydraulic equipment such as Cincinnati Machine, Parker Dennison and Eaton Vickers.
* Average of customer reported and Shell managed evaluations. Improvements in energy efficiency will vary depending upon the application, operating conditions, current product being used, the condition of the equipment, maintenance practices being adopted and the intensity of hydraulic power used.