Worm gear grease is the semi-fluid NLGI 0/00 lubricant for sealed worm gearbox — lift / elevator drive, escalator drive, small conveyor, valve actuator, packaging machinery. Distinguished from regular gear oil by semi-fluid pumpable consistency + COPPER-friendly EP chemistry (bronze worm wheel must not be attacked by sulphur-EP). India volume ~1,500-2,500 MT/year. This guide gives the lithium NLGI 0 BOM with phosphate ester EP and Indian sourcing.
| Component | Function | % (m/m) | Indian Supplier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Group I Bright Stock | Heavy base for boundary film | 38.0% | IOCL Group I Bright |
| Group I SN500 | Carrier base | 30.0% | IOCL / HPCL Group I |
| 12-Hydroxystearic acid (low treat) | Lithium soap former (reduced for semi-fluid) | 5.0% | Croda / Wilmar India |
| Lithium hydroxide monohydrate | Alkali | 0.8% | FMC / SQM |
| Phosphate ester EP (TCP / TXP, Cu-friendly) | Primary EP — no sulphur on bronze | 5.0% | BASF Vanlube TCP / Albemarle |
| Mixed ZDDP AW (low treat) | Mild anti-wear | 0.5% | Lubrizol / LC-AW-ZDDP |
| Lead naphthenate (legacy heavy EP, Cu-safe) | Heavy EP for high-load worm gear | 2.0% | Specialty Pb additive suppliers |
| Alkylated DPA aminic AO | Antioxidant | 0.5% | LANXESS Naugalube 438L |
| ASA + TTA CI | Ferrous + yellow-metal protection | 0.5% | King K-Corr + Cobratec |
| PIB tackifier (Mn 1300, low treat) | Mild adhesion (preserve semi-fluid) | 0.5% | BASF Glissopal |
| Calcium nitrite | Vapour-phase rust | 0.3% | Indian inorganic |
| Group I 150N diluent | Consistency fine-tune to NLGI 0 | 16.9% | IOCL Group I |
| TOTAL | 100.0% | — | |
| CRITICAL: NO sulphurised olefin EP (would attack bronze worm wheel). Phosphate ester + lead naphthenate copper-safe EP only. | |||
Process: lithium soap saponification with LOW fatty acid treat (gives semi-fluid NLGI 0) at 195-210 °C; dehydrate 140 °C; cool to 80 °C and add COPPER-FRIENDLY EP (phosphate ester + lead naphthenate — NO sulphur); add AO + CI + tackifier; mill to NLGI 0 (penetration 355-385). QC: drop >175 °C, 4-ball weld 300+ kgf, copper strip D130 1B (CRITICAL — bronze worm wheel protection), water washout <10%. Ex-works cost ₹180-260 / kg. Pack 18 kg pail (workshop) or 180 kg drum. The copper-friendly EP / AW / AO dose is drawn from our grease additive package, and the D130 / weld-load checks run under our ASTM lubricant & grease testing programme.
Worm gear grease is the semi-fluid lubricant for sealed worm gearbox — lift / elevator drive, escalator, small conveyor, valve actuator, packaging machinery. Distinguished from regular industrial gear oil by: (1) Semi-fluid NLGI 0 / 00 consistency, (2) COPPER-friendly EP chemistry (worm gear wheel is typically bronze — must not be attacked by sulphur-EP), (3) High-VI base.
Modern worm gearbox uses liquid synthetic PAG or ester gear oil; worm gear grease retained for older / leaky / specialty gearbox where semi-fluid pumpable consistency is required.
NLGI 0 lithium semi-fluid BOM (%): Group I Bright Stock 38%, Group I SN500 30%, 12-HSA (low) 5%, LiOH 0.8%, phosphate ester EP (Cu-friendly) 5%, ZDDP low 0.5%, lead naphthenate (legacy heavy EP) 2%, aminic AO 0.5%, ASA + TTA 0.5%, PIB 0.5%, Ca nitrite 0.3%, balance Group I 150N diluent.
Process: Li saponification with LOW fatty acid treat; cool 80 °C, add Cu-friendly EP (NO sulphur); mill to NLGI 0 (355-385). Drop >175 °C, 4-ball weld 300+ kgf, copper strip 1B CRITICAL.
Worm gearbox has steel worm screw + bronze (Cu-Sn or Cu-Sn-Pb) worm wheel. Bronze selected for high sliding friction tolerance + low galling. Sulphur-EP additives (standard in GL-5 hypoid at 3-5% active S) attack bronze — turn it black, etch, reduce wheel life.
Phosphate ester EP (TCP, TXP) and amine phosphate AW are copper-friendly. Lead naphthenate is legacy heavy-EP that's copper-safe — still used in worm gear grease + open gear. Copper strip D130 at 100 °C 24 hr must rate 1A-1B.
(1) Lift / elevator drive (Otis, Schindler, Kone, Mitsubishi, Johnson Lifts) — sealed worm gearbox top of shaft. ~30%. (2) Escalator + travelator (metros, malls, airports) ~15%. (3) Small conveyor / industrial drive ~25%. (4) Valve actuator (Rotork, AUMA, Limitorque) ~15%. (5) Stage hoist, telescope mount ~5%. (6) Others ~10%.
India ~1,500-2,500 MT/year. Brands: Klueber Grafloscon C-SG 1500 Plus, Shell Omala S2 GX 220, Mobilgear OGL, IOCL Servo Worm Gear, BPCL Mak. ₹240-450 / kg. Lubechem (LC-WG-NLGI0) ex-works ₹180-260 / kg. Producers planning a semi-fluid line of their own should budget the grease plant setup cost against this volume.
Different applications, different chemistry. Hypoid gear oil (API GL-5, SAE 80W-90 / 85W-140) is LIQUID for automotive hypoid rear axle (steel-on-steel hypoid). High active sulphur (3-5%) for shock-load. Aggressive on copper.
Worm gear grease is SEMI-FLUID NLGI 0/00 for worm gearbox (steel worm + BRONZE wheel). Phosphate ester + lead naphthenate copper-friendly EP. Cannot use GL-5 hypoid in worm gearbox — bronze destroyed. Cannot use worm gear grease in hypoid axle — insufficient EP. Workshop discipline critical.
Share your application (lift / escalator / conveyor / valve actuator), NLGI grade (0 vs 00) and volume. We respond within one business day.