Oil Analysis

Why is oil analysis so important to machine reliability and the maintenance organisation? Mechanical machinery literally rides on a 10-micrometer film of oil, which is approximately equal to the diameter of a blood cell. Loss of this film means failure. It is critical to ensure that this oil is kept healthy, clean and dry. Oil analysis accomplishes this goal. Additionally, like blood in the human body, the oil carries important clues about the health of the machine. Oil analysis turns these clues into valuable information, which supports operations and maintenance decisions.

Three critical reasons for on-site oil analysis:

1. Ensures pro-active process control by:

• Checking the health and cleanliness of lubricants as they arrive. It is a common and dangerous assumption that all new oil is clean and healthy.
• Checking the health and cleanliness of lubricants in storage.
• Quickly identify failed filters.

2. Develops effective Predictive Maintenance and Troubleshooting Techniques by:

• Identifying wearing components at an early stage.
• Determine problem severity by measuring rate of change in particle measurement.
• Verify problems identified by other means of analysis such as Infrared thermography and vibration.
• Verify the effectiveness of corrective actions such as filter changes etc.

3. Improve the effectiveness of your organisation by:

• Utilisation of all oil analysis data allows you to run a predictive maintenance programme that monitors the condition of the oil and machinery through particle counts and identification. This information allows the engineer to determine the life cycle of the machine and when oil and filters require changing.
• An effective oil analysis programme involves all individuals within the companies' maintenance regime by empowering them with the knowledge and data to act in the best interest of the organisation.

Oil analysis programmes are an effective predictive engineering tool. Particle count ensures cleanliness and by measuring the ferrous content you can quickly determine if the particles are wear or dirt, thereby streamlining actions. Moisture detection assures that the oil is dry. Dirt and water are the primary causes of machine and lubricant degradation. Monitoring these ensures that they are controlled. Viscosity is the most important lubricant property, any degradation of the lubricant, wrong lubricant, etc. will be revealed by viscosity measurement.

Mechanical machinery literally runs on a 10mm film of oil. Loss of this 10mm means CRITICAL FAILURE!!