Metal working of a metal using a tool to work the metal is a practice which has been carried out for years. Prior art fluids have been used to facilitate such metal working. However, previously known oil-containing metal working fluids require reclaiming or disposal other than by discharging to common sewage treatment systems. In some cases the cost of disposal has become such a major cost that it approaches the initial cost of the fluid.
Without being bound by theory it is believed that metal working fluids fulfill one or more functions in various metal working applications. Typically, such illustrative nonlimiting functions include removal of heat from the work piece and tool (cooling), reduction of friction among chips, tool and work piece (lubrication), removal of metal debris produced by the work, reduction or inhibition of corrosion and prevention or reduction of build-up on edges as between the work piece and the tool. Thus these one or more functions usually require a formulation or combination of components in the lubricant fluid to accomplish the best attributes required for a particular metal working operation.
References for metal working disclaim an illustrative variety of metal working operations include The 12th American Machinist Inventory of Metalworking Equipment 1976-78, American Machinist, December 1978 and November 1983; McGraw-Hill, Inc. 1221 Avenue of the Americas, New York N.Y. 10020;
Lubricants, Cutting Fluids, and Coolants; Wilbert J. Olds, Cahners Books, 89 Franklin Street, Boston, Mass. 02110;
TRIBOLOGY IN METAL WORKING, Friction, Lubricant and Wear, John A. Schey, Professor , Department of Mechanical Enginering, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, American Society for Metals, Metals Park, Ohio 44073. All three above references are incorporated herein in their entirety by reference.
Various fluids at times have been recently proposed to be substituted for oil-containing metal working fluids such as primary amides, ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid, fatty acid esters, and alkanolamine salts. Such compounds can be replenished during use by dissolving tablets containing such compounds during the useful life of the fluid. See U.S. Pat. No. 4,144,188 to Sato.
Some amines have also been found useful in cutting oils as antibacterial agents. Such amines include alkanolamine and arylalkylamine such as p-benzylaminophenol. See EPO 90-400732 to Noda et al.
As noted above, one of the problems occurring in industry is the proper disposal of metal working fluids. The above mentioned amines are removed from the fluids by biodegradation, requiring facilities such as settling tanks, treatment tanks and sludge treatment tanks. Such a system is disclosed in Japanese Patent 03181395. Other methods of waste disposal and oil removal systems are employed to comply with environmental standards.
Worker safety can be an issue with presently employed oil-containing water soluble metal working fluids. Such fluids unavoidably come in contact with workers using the fluids in cutting, bending, threading and other metal working applications. Such oil-containing fluids may create a mist at the site of the work piece being operated on or when the fluid is sprayed and such mist travels through the air in the vicinity of the machine and the operator thereof. Some attempts have been made to reduce the mist problem as is noted in British Patent 2,252,103. There is disclosed therein a polymeric thickener comprising a copolymer of acrylamide, sodium acrylate and N-n-octyl acrylamide. The copolymer is formulated with water soluble and water insoluble monomer.
Because of the misting and drift thereof in the work place employing some commonly employed water-soluble metal working fluids, there is usually associated with such work place a distinctive odor which permeates the entire area. Usually such odor is unpleasant and is tolerated as a condition which is unavoidable.
There is needed an odorless, non-oil misting, water soluble metal working fluid, particularly useful in cutting operations. There is also needed a fluid which would dispense with the need for disposal costs, and provide the work place with a more sanitary and acceptable atmosphere in which to work.
It is an object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition for use in metal working environments.
It is another object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition which is effective with and without use of a phosphate or phosphonate or borates.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition which is effective with the use of phosphorus containing compounds.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition useful in extreme pressure applications.
It is yet a further object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition containing a lubricating imparting component which contains a carboxylate moiety and a phosphorus moiety within the same molecule.
It is yet a further object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition which is effective when used with borate compounds.
It is yet a further object of the invention to provide an enhanced lubricating composition containing a lubricating imparting mixture in which one component contains an amide and the same or a second component contains a phosphorus moiety.
Yet another further object of this invention is to provide an enhanced lubricating composition containing manufactured and naturally occurring polymers such as proteins used with or without a phosphorus moiety or borate moiety to provide the extreme pressure lubrication and additionally simple or boundary lubrication.
These and other objects are met in the invention herein, a nonlimiting description of which follows hereinafter.
There has now been discovered an essentially odorless, substantially non-oil misting, water soluble metal working fluid useful for a variety of metal working operations, including without limitation cutting, grinding, forming, and the like comprising at least one component selected from a first Group A herein and optionally one or more components selected from a second Group B hereinxe2x80x94preferably with the balance of the composition being water and other (optional) minor ingredients. When a component is employed from Group A and a component is employed from Group B the action of the combination generally enhances performance of the resulting combination. If desired optionally more than one component can be utilized from Group A and/or Group B depending on the specific application or in addition if desired a component from Group A can be an adduct of components from Group A and Group B whereby that resulting adduct component importing enhanced lubrication contains a carboxylate and phosphorus moiety within the same molecule.
The invention comprises a method of metal working which comprises providing as a lubricant to said metal, a lubricating effective amount of a fluid lubricant composition comprising one or more water soluble components selected from: a first group (A) comprising:
amides; polyamides; polyamino acids, salts and esters; a monocarboxylic acid(s) having one to six carbon atoms functionalized or nonfunctionalized, examples are C1-C20 alkoxy, sulfone, alkylene phosphonates, sulfide, functionalized amines and the like, salts and esters, with the proviso that this does not include the 2-hydroxybutyric acid and 3-hydroxybutyric acid; polycarboxylic acids, salts or their esters; amino acids, salts and esters; sulfonic acids and salts; a sulfur compound selected from mercaptan, sulfide, disulfide or polysulfide; mercaptocarboxylic acids, salts and esters; keto acids; amine substituted organo acids; substituted amino acids, salts and esters; organosulfonates; sodium or potassium sulfide, sodium or potassium hydrogen sulfide, organic acids containing one or more moieties selected from carboxylate, sulfate, sulfonate, phosphate, or phosphonate, present as the free acids, or their salts; organic acids containing one or more moieties selected from carboxylate, sulfate, sulfonate, phosphate, or phosphonate present as the free acids or their salts, and additionally a moiety selected from sulfone, sulfonamide, sulfonic ester, sulfate ester, ketone, carboxylic ester, amide, amine, ether, sulfide, disulfide, or aryl; alone or optionally with one or more components selected from a second Group (B) comprising:
phosphates, borates, phosphonates, phosphites and hypophosphites; and
which composition provides a synergistic lubricating or added functionality effect when used with one or more component(s) of Group (A) and Group (B).
In one embodiment, the composition comprises a reaction product(s) of said composition associated with a component or components therein or the application of said composition to a metal being worked. The lubricants employed herein have a lubricant property selected from the group consisting of extreme pressure, boundary lubricant, simple film or anti-wear or combinations thereof. It is most preferred to employ a phosphate as a component of Group B of this invention along with polyamino acid or polycarboxylate or amide or polyamide or amino acid as a component of Group A.