Monolec® is LE Lubricants Inc.'s exclusive wear-reducing additive, designed to create a durable, single-molecule film on metal surfaces. This innovative film boosts oil film strength without altering clearances, making Monolec® essential in LE’s high-performance engine oils, industrial lubricants, and other specialty products. By allowing metal components to glide smoothly past one another, Monolec® reduces friction, heat, and wear—even under demanding conditions.
The Monolec® name, derived from "mono-molecular," refers to its unique single-layer protective shield, which prevents metal-to-metal contact. Originating from World War II-era research, this technology was refined by LE to create today’s leading lubricants, delivering trusted performance to industries in the Philippines and worldwide.
Even when polished, metal surfaces are not truly smooth; under a microscope, they appear as rugged landscapes with millions of microscopic peaks, known as asperities, separated by valleys up to 15 microns deep. When metal surfaces slide against each other, especially under high pressure, frictional heat can cause these peaks to tear, leading to lubricant film breakdown, metal seizure, and even welding of surfaces.
Monolec® technology tackles these challenges by forming a single molecular layer over metal surfaces, reducing friction with a unique “ball bearing” effect. In high-pressure scenarios where oil film rupture might occur, Monolec® responds to friction-induced heat by creating a synthetic lubricating film at the asperities, allowing the peaks to soften and flow smoothly, minimizing wear.
Through a specialized process called particulate attraction, Monolec® also significantly boosts the film strength of lubricants. This enhanced film strength safeguards the lubricating layer from rupturing under stress, promoting smoother, low-friction operations and extending the life of equipment. Monolec® remains an essential innovation in ensuring reliable, efficient machinery performance for industries in the Philippines and beyond.
Under a microscope, even polished metal surfaces resemble rugged mountain ranges, with countless sharp peaks known as asperities (Figure 1). When a single layer of Monolec® molecules is applied, the metal surfaces become significantly smoother and are shielded from friction. This protection is due to the unique “ball bearing” effect created by the Monolec® molecules, reducing direct contact and wear (Figure 2).
Beyond its unique ball bearing action, Monolec® significantly boosts the film strength of lubricants through a process known as particulate attraction. In a controlled test measuring Monolec's wear-reducing properties, a radioactive wear test was conducted to provide visual proof of Monolec’s efficacy (Figures 3 and 4).
In Figure 3, a photomicrograph shows the surface of a piston skirt, magnified 2,400 times, from a test engine run for 480 hours using a control oil without Monolec®. This engine experienced a wear rate of 3.5 milligrams per hour. Figure 4 shows an identical piston skirt, also run for 480 hours using the same oil but with Monolec® added, resulting in a wear rate of only 2.7 milligrams per hour. Monolec® reduced metal wear by 24.2%, enabling smoother, more efficient operation and extending component life.
