A lubricant additive factory that ExxonMobil operates on behalf of Infineum is wrapping up an expansion of a facility that makes detergent components.
Infineum said the €35 million project at ExxonMobil Chemical’s refinery in Port-Jerome, France, will allow for increased output of magnesium sulfonate while also improving reliability. The project is scheduled to be completed and operational by the first quarter of 2021.
Detergents are used in lubricants to prevent formation of deposits that can result from lube degradation and that can interfere with operation of engines. Infineum uses detergents based on sulfonate, salicylate and phenate chemistries.
Infineum is a 50-50 joint venture between ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell. The magnesium sulfonate facility is within ExxonMobil Chemical’s Notre Dame de Gravenchon plant, which is part of an ExxonMobil fuels and petrochemical refining complex at Port-Jerome, in Northern France.
The expansion consists largely of installing a third magnesium sulfonate reactor, which was delivered recently. Officials said it would allow production to continue when the existing reactors are idled for maintenance.
“The enhanced capability from this unit, from which the component is deployed in many formulations as a key enabler of performance in latest generation applications, will mean improved supply reliability for Infineum customers” Chris Locke, executive vice president for supply, said in an Oct. 28 press release.
Infineum has three main additive production facilities in Europe – in Berre-L’Etang, near France’s Mediterranean coast; in Cologne, Germany; and in Vado Ligure, Italy.
