SEPA
                     United States
                     Environmental Protection
                     Agency
                                           Office of Solid Waste
                                           and Emergency Response
                                           (OS-305)
               EPA/530-SW-91-043
               June 1991
                     Office of Solid Waste
                     Environmental
                     Fact  Sheet
                    EPA Guideline for Purchasing
                    Re-Refined Lubricating Oil
    Re-refined oils are used
 lubricating oils that have
 been cleaned through a
 refining process. Like
 virgin oils, they are mixed
 with an appropriate pack-
 age of additives to produce
 a desired performance.
    Performance of
     Re-refined Oil
   EPA reviewed studies of
re-refined oil conducted by
the National Bureau of
Standards, the Army, the
Department of Energy, and
others.  These studies con-
cluded that re-refined oils
perform as well as virgin
oils. The National Bureau
of Standards concluded that
laboratory and field testing
of re-refined oils is sufficient
to demonstrate that they can
meet the prescribed test
                          limits, are substantially
                          equivalent to virgin oils,
                          and, for some parameters,
                          perform better than virgin
                          oils.

                           Procurement Guideline

                             To increase the use of
                          re-refined oil within both
                          government and private
                          sectors, on June 30, 1988,
                          EPA issued a guideline for
                          purchasing lubricating oils
                          containing re-refined oil. All
                          federal agencies and all
                          state and local government
                          agencies and contractors
                          that use federal funds to
                          purchase such products are
                          required to implement a
                          preference program favoring
                          the purchase of re-refined oil
                          to the maximum extent
                          practicable.

                             Procuring agents should
                          not require lubricating  oils
containing re-refined oil to
meet any performance stan-
dard higher than that re-
quired of virgin lubricating
oils.
   API Specifications
   In general, engine oils
 are purchased using mili-
 tary specifications or the
 engine service classification
 system developed by the
 American Petroleum Insti-
 tute (API). The API service
 level is specified in the
 owner's manual of a vehicle.
 It generally consists of two
 letters, such as SF  or SG for
 gasoline engines or CC, CD,
 CD-II, or CE for diesel
 engines. These letters are a
 shorthand describing the
 required properties of the
 engine lubricating oil suit-
 able for a particular vehicle.
                                                        <
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Oils meeting the API
levels generally are pack-
aged in containers bear-
ing the API-licensed logo.
The logo consists of two
concentric circles with
the API service level
identified in the space
between the circles.	

 Military Specifications

   To meet the  military
specifications or the API
service levels, lubricating
oil, whether virgin or re-
refined, must pass certain
testing programs. Oil meet-
ing the military specifica-
tions also meets the API
service levels, but not vice-
versa.  A Qualified Products
List of oil meeting the mili-
tary specifications is main-
tained by the U.S. Army's
Research and Development
Center at Fort Belvoir, VA.
   Testing for meeting the
military specifications is
more extensive - and there-
fore more expensive - than
testing for meeting the API
service level. Re-refiners
generally are small busi-
nesses that have had diffi-
culty in raising the capital
needed to undergo testing to
meet the military specifica-
tions.  As a result, several
re-refined oils meeting the
API levels are available, and
one re-refined oil has quali-
fied as meeting the military
specifications.

 Methods of Purchasing
      Re-refined Oil

   Re-refined oil products
can be purchased through
sealed bidding or negotia-
tion for supply of the prod-
ucts.  In addition, federal
agencies could consider
closed-loop and quasi-closed-
loop arrangements.

   In a closed-loop arrange-
ment, the re-refiner con-
tracts to remove the agen-
cy's used oil, re-refine it, and
return it for reuse.  In a
quasi-closed-loop arrange-
ment, the re-refiner con-
tracts to remove the
agency's used oil for re-
refining and to supply re-
refined oil; the oil supplied
may or may not have been
produced from the agency's
used oil.
   Product Availability

   There are five North
American re-refiners pro-
ducing lubricating oils
addressed by the EPA guide-
line. Depending on the
company, re-refined oil
products are available na-
tionally or in large geo-
graphic segments of the
United States.
   Recommended Re-
  refined Oil Preference

   EPA recommends that
 procuring agencies set a
 minimum re-refined oil
 content standard for pur-
 chasing engine lubricating
 oils, hydraulic fluids, and
 gear oils at 25 percent of the
 base stock.
  Further Information

   For further information,
including copies of the
guideline and a list of re-
refiners and their products,
please contact EPA's pro-
curement guidelines hotline
at (703) 941-4452.

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