2023-08-05 19:04:01
Industrial oil is a widely used product in various areas of our society due to its versatility. In addition to its application in vehicle engines, it is used in a wide variety of industrial processes and in other activities where gears and machinery of any kind are used: from the small power generator in a hotel to a wind turbine on top of a hill. Due to this diversity of uses, used oils are generated in all corners of the territory.
74% of the used industrial oil collected in the Community of Madrid during the past year was destined for regeneration, the treatment that allows the waste to be converted into new lubricants. Thanks to the regenerated residue, it was possible to produce more than 5,000 tons of new lubricants, thus avoiding the consumption of 2.6 million barrels of oil and the emission into the atmosphere of about 6,000 tons of CO2. The remaining 26% of the used oil was used for energy recovery, producing a fuel similar to fuel oil.
«Thanks to the use of used oil from our cars and machines, we not only avoid the environmental impact of hazardous waste, but we also reduce the use of a non-renewable raw material such as oil, even more so in the context of the current energy crisis. In addition to significant economic savings, the processes to obtain second generation products consume less energy and emit fewer greenhouse gases than traditional processes,” says Eduardo de Lecea, General Director of SIGAUS.
In 2022, nearly 7,000 Madrid establishments of all kinds generated 14,156 gross tons of used industrial oils (an amount that includes 16% of improper materials, such as water or sediment). More than half of these establishments (4,374) were mechanical workshops (multi-brand establishments, multi-services, dealerships, fast mechanics, etc.), constituting the activity with the highest generation of this hazardous waste: 55% of the total volume recovered in this community by SIGAUS, the system in charge of managing this hazardous waste throughout Spain.
The rest of the waste was collected in very heterogeneous sectors, such as industry, agriculture, commerce, hospitality, transport or construction, and very diverse generation points, such as hospitals, military installations, golf courses, educational centers or clean points, among others, which added a total of 2,525 establishments (37% of the total).
Environmental protection in vulnerable areas
The consumption of lubricants in such diverse economic activities means that the resulting used oils are generated in a very fragmented and dispersed manner throughout the territory, which requires complex and expensive operations. During the past year, through the network of managers who collect used oils, 20,670 collections were carried out in the 142 Madrid municipalities where this waste was generated.
A large number of collections took place in rural areas, where 2% (182) of the establishments served by SIGAUS are located. In them, 229 tons of used industrial oils were recovered. The recovery of waste in this environment is especially important, since most vulnerable areas from an environmental point of view (such as protected natural areas, rivers or reservoirs) are located in rural areas.
The Community of Madrid is characterized by great natural wealth. In 2022 SIGAUS collected 125 tons of used oils in the vicinity of 8 protected areas (National Parks, Natural Parks and Reserves, and Ramsar Zones). Only in the surroundings of the Biosphere Reserve of the Upper Basins of the Manzanares, Lozoya and Guadarrama Rivers, 42 tons of used oils were collected in 15 establishments.
On the other hand, in the environment of water resources —such as rivers, lakes or reservoirs—, 134 tons of used oils generated in 13 establishments located less than 250 meters away were collected. The recovery of the residue in these areas is vital, since a spill of used industrial oil in the water can last for 15 or 20 years, preventing its oxygenation and seriously damaging the existing ecosystems in these aquatic environments.
Transform waste into valuable resources
The transformation of waste into new resources is one of the best ways to reduce the consumption of raw materials, essential to manufacture all kinds of products for a constantly growing global population. This is the case of used industrial oil, a waste that, well managed, can be fully recovered. In its composition it maintains the original material and energy resources, being of great value to be transformed into new products, or as a source of energy.
In the Community of Madrid, 74% of the used oil managed during the past year was treated through regeneration, the priority environmental treatment. The volume of waste destined for this process, 8,753 tons, allowed the production of 5,480 tons of new lubricants. Thanks to this management, the consumption of the 2.6 million barrels of oil that would have been necessary to manufacture them through oil refining was avoided. In addition, the regeneration of used oil uses less energy and emits fewer greenhouse gases than the production of first-refined lubricants. In this sense, the regeneration of used oil prevented the emission into the atmosphere of 5,839 tons of CO2.
The used oils that were not intended for regeneration, 3,134 tons (26%), underwent a decontamination process through physical processes (decantation, centrifugation and filtering) and chemical reagents to convert them into a fuel for industrial use, with characteristics similar to that of Traditional fuel oil, which is used in thermal power plants, cement plants, paper mills, marine equipment, etc. Thanks to this treatment, the emission into the atmosphere of 1,717 tons of CO2 and the consumption of more than 323,000 barrels of oil that would have been needed to manufacture this fuel from oil were avoided.
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