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Measuring the Viscosity of an Oil  Viscosity is the measurement of an oil’s resistance to flow. Typically, we can expect viscosity to decrease with a temperature increase, and increase with a temperature decrease. Viscosity and temperature are considered to be inversely proportional. In oil analysis, viscosity is commonly measured using kinematic viscometers and reported in centistokes (cSt). Viscosity can also be measured using absolute (dynamic) viscosity techniques and reported in centipoise....

Oil analysis was first employed on engines as a predictive maintenance tool, and it remains a predominant technique for insuring the reliability of engine systems. Reciprocating internal combustion engines power most of the world's mobile equipment, such as cars, trucks, buses, locomotives, mining equipment, agricultural equipment and are also common in stationary backup power generators, oil and gas exploration rigs, and pipeline compression stations. Engine oil must be changed before it re...

How can on-site oil analysis benefit food and beverage organizations? Our expert, Dan Walsh, illustrates how on-site oil analysis programs can positively impact operational excellence for food and beverage manufacturers.   Why On-site Oil Analysis? Food and beverage manufacturers are looking for solutions that reduce the cost of manufacturing, while maintaining regulatory compliance. They also strive to maximize productivity and reduce process variability. Big Picture  Almost all food and beve...

Oil analysis is a very useful tool for gear systems. Geared systems are found across both mobile and industrial equipment. Though they are designed to be very reliable, they cause a lot of disruption and costs when they wear or break due to poor operation or contamination. Oil analysis is a great tool to detect when failure conditions are developing, and as such most gear manufacturers suggest condition monitoring, including oil analysis. Gear wear can be aggravated by misalignment, poor lubric...

Oil and gas exploration companies have been using oil analysis for many years to lower maintenance costs, predict and prevent equipment failures, and increase uptime for drill rigs, both on land and at sea. The often remote location of such rigs and inaccessibility to commercial oil analysis laboratories make them perfect candidates for on-site oil analysis. In this edition of Ask the Expert, Dan Walsh discusses the need for on-site oil analysis and many of the benefits for exploration companies...

Uptime is one of the key considerations for all power generators. Electricity supply must equal demand at all times. Downtime, especially unplanned downtime, is very difficult to deal with and can be quite costly. Fortunately condition based monitoring can go a long way towards preventing unscheduled downtime and achieving uptime goals in excess of 98%. In particular, on-site oil analysis is a key tool used by power generators to avoid unplanned outages. Power generators are familiar with oil an...

  How does water enter the oil?  Routinely monitoring water concentration in oil is an important part of any oil condition monitoring program. Water can enter the oil as a result of environmental conditions, condensation from cooler areas of the equipment, and/or compromised seal integrity. Three phases of water Ideally, water remains in its dissolved state, dispersed molecule-by-molecule throughout the oil. Once the oil reaches its saturation point, the oil then becomes dispersed as microscopi...

Mining Fleet Oil Analysis  Mining fleets and their managers utilize oil analysis to keep their equipment up and running. From drill and blast to transportation, they need to know their equipment won't fail on them. Some of the largest equipment in the world is created for mining fleets, and keeping them lubricated is of utmost importance. On-site oil analysis can not only keep equipment in check, but lower maintenance costs as well. In the latest addition to the "Ask the Expert" video series, D...

Particle counting is a critical aspect of any machine conditioning program and there are many tools out there available to monitor and track the quantity and severity of the contamination, be it due to external contamination or machine wear. The specific application and type of particles will often govern what is the best particle counting technique for the job at hand. The continuous cleanliness of a hydraulic system, for instance, is very critical and even very low levels of dirt ingress can ...

Introduction  This white paper reports diesel engine oil analysis data demonstrating use of filtergram particle quantifier x-ray fluorescence (FPQ spectroscopy) to quantify severity of wear and contamination. Two independent measurements are performed on each filtergram specimen: pore blockage particle count and FPQ spectroscopic large particle elemental analysis. Causal inflections in ASTM D7720 cumulative distributions indicate severity thresholds for FPQ spectroscopic elemental analyses. K...