Lanolin in technical applications

As a wax with grease-like properties, lanolin offers exceptional adhesion to metals and impressive lubricating qualities. Its effectiveness and affordability make wool grease and technical-grade lanolin invaluable in various technical applications.

The multi-purpose potential of lanolin

While lanolin is classified as a wax from a chemical perspective, it possesses all the physical properties of grease. Its exceptional adhesion to metals and impressive lubricating qualities make ´wool grease and technical-grade lanolin highly effective and affordable anti-friction agents for a wide range of technical applications.

Lanolin, with its anti-corrosive properties, serves as a valuable lubricating and preserving material for a wide range of engineering parts. Similar to other applications of lanolin, its compatibility with various additives enables the creation of specialised preparations with unique properties.

Some notable applications include:

  • lubrication grease for engineering parts
  • metal cutting oil
  • lubricant for metal processing, such as rolling, grinding, pressing, and more

Special anti-corrosive functions

Lanolin finds its application as a saltwater-resistant dewatering rust preventative for safeguarding ships and seawater tanks. Additionally, it proves valuable in the preservation and protection of various ferrous vehicle and vintage car parts, including crevices of the front and car boot lid, wheel house, mudguard, underbody parts, and more. It can also be utilised to protect engineering parts, such as cylinder pistons, during storage. Furthermore, lanolin enhances the resistance of chromed parts against road salt, seawater, and acid rain. Additionally, it aids in the regeneration of bitumen underbody protection.

Moreover, lanolin serves as a reliable conservation agent for diverse items, including military hardware, conduits, pipelines, machinery, roofing tiles, sheets, plates, tools, steel wire ropes, surfaces of wood, fabric, and much more.

Nurturing leather with natural care

To ensure the preservation of leather, it is essential to employ chemical tanning agents to yield a durable product. However, this intensive procedure often depletes the leather of crucial animal lipids required to maintain its softness and suppleness. Therefore, it becomes necessary to restore the moisture and natural fat balance post-tanning in order to fortify the leather and enhance its resilience.

Nature has ingeniously designed wool grease to serve as a natural moisturiser. Consequently, lanolin has gained widespread recognition as a valued emollient within the leather industry. Furthermore, it serves as a pivotal ingredient in leather treatment and finds extensive application in:

  • treating and processing tanned leather
  • nourishing weathered leather as an oil and emollient
  • enhancing emulsification and gloss in shoe polishes
  • providing a soft finish to textiles as an emollient

Paint, lotions, & beyond

In various technical applications, lanolin proves to be highly versatile and beneficial:

  • In paints, spraying varnishes, and inks, it acts as a dispersing agent, ensuring homogeneous coverage, preventing pigment aggregation and settling, improving paint handling, reducing drying time, and serving as a permeation inhibitor for inks, all while providing and controlling fluidity.
  • It finds application in polishing waxes and abrasives.
  • Lanolin serves as a paper conditioner, enhancing softness and providing steam resistance for surgical instrument wrappings requiring sterilisation.
  • In industrial hand-cleaner creams and lotions, it acts as a superfatting agent, minimising the dehydrating effect of detergents.
  • Lanolin’s high oil-binding capacity makes it valuable in oil-binding agents, particularly due to the presence of lanolic acid metal soaps.
  • It finds use in concrete waterproofing products.
  • In numerous other applications, including aircraft glues, conveyor belt wax, special greases, jointing pastes, vulcanising pastes, and more.

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