Cutting fluids for the glass container industry: development, physicochemical and anti-corrosion properties

The aim of this work is to develop a water-miscible cutting fluid based on a mixture of oils, emulsifiers and various additives, designed to lubricate and cool the blades of shears of glass forming machines. The lubricant must have high consumer characteristics - low consumption, good detergent, anti-corrosion and bactericidal properties, environmental friendliness, must provide an effective cut of glass drops without formation of cut marks on the bottles. Several laboratory samples of lubricants have been obtained and analyzed. Laboratory samples should be homogeneous, resistant to low temperatures and give stable emulsions in distilled and tap water. For these samples, various physicochemical characteristics were determined - the surface tension of aqueous emulsions, the contact angle of wetting a metal surface with lubricant emulsion, the work of adhesion of the lubricant to a metal surface, and the anti-corrosion effect at elevated temperatures. These characteristics were compared with the characteristics of Russian and foreign lubricants currently used in glass container industry. One laboratory sample with the best characteristics was selected and recommended for further extended testing. This sample is characterized by a high anti-corrosion effect at elevated temperatures, low value of the surface tension by the working dilution and by a nearly constant adhesion work in a wide range of dilutions. By these characteristics, the new sample is close to commercially available synthetic lubricants and significantly outperforms some oil-containing lubricants. It was also found that there is no clear correlation between the work of adhesion of the lubricant to the metal and its anti-corrosion effect.