Evaluations of vegetable oil‐based as lubricants for metal‐forming processes

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess lubricating performances of selected locally produced vegetable oil‐based lubricants with a view to utilizing them as a possible alternative to petroleum‐based lubricants in metal‐forming processes.Design/methodology/approachThe ring compression testing and twin disks upsetting testing methods were employed.FindingsThe results obtained from these two tests showed that the red palm oil performed better than others at room temperature, followed by sheabutter oil, while palm kernel oil performed the least. High‐temperatures compression ring tests gave sheabutter oil lower values of friction coefficients than red palm oil.Research limitations/implicationsFurther work should be done on numerous vegetable oil‐based lubricants. Also those that show promising performance could be further investigated with locally available additives.Practical implicationsThese are numerous since increase in environmental interest has resulted in a renewed interest in vegetable oil‐based lubricants.Originality/valueThe research work has broken new ground in finding applications for environmentally friendly lubricants in various areas of metal‐forming processes.