#insight services

TestOil  is committed to continually improving the services and tools we provide to our customers.  With that said we would like to share with you some of the exciting new advancements we have made to our web-based reporting application, also known as DataSight.

DataSight is one of the most advanced web-based tools available in our industry.  It is a simple, organized, one-stop solution for program management that makes any oil analysis program more effective.

Our latest update to DataSight includes a new DASHBOARD which  comes bundled with a comprehensive suite of clever tools that provide our customers with a snapshot of their entire oil analysis program.  The dashboard has been specifically designed to help our customers streamline their oil analysis program management.

The new dashboard features:

A Monthly Scorecard, which is a snapshot view of the tests run for the month based on machine and lubricant, as well as the location where the sample was pulled.

Sample Trends is a overview of  sample volume completed over the past 18 months.

Exception Trend graphically depicts machine anomalies and lube anomalies also based on the past 18 months.

The Repeat Offenders table identifies specific problems with equipment and what problems you’re noticing

Lastly, Examples Due By Month is a table based on the schedule that you have already set up within your customer website.

“We have a 600-liter sump that supplies 150 liters per minute to eight turbine bearings from one reservoir. The oil flows from the reservoir by a single pump and filter, then separates to the eight bearings. We take the oil samples from the return lines before they join for the return to the reservoir. None of the samples show much wear. On the last sampling when there was a sign of bearing failure, the sample for that bearing showed only 4 ppm iron, 2 ppm tin, 1 ppm aluminum, 2 ppm silicon, 2 ppm sodium, 2 ppm magnesium, and everything else 0. Viscosity was 66.7 on Regal 68 at 1,000 hours (6,200 on the unit). Why would samples not show that there was a problem?”

The answer to your question can likely be summed up in one word — dilution! Assuming, as you state, that you are sampling on the return lines from each bearing, the reason for the low wear metal levels is likely due to the comparatively high oil volume in the return lines. In oil analysis, wear debris is measured in parts per million. When you state “2 ppm tin,” what you are actually saying is “2 mg of tin for every kilogram of oil.”

So the same amount of wear debris distributed in a large volume of oil, such as a circulating turbine, will generate a much lower ppm than the same amount of wear in a small wet sump system where the volume of oil is typically much smaller.

To minimize the effects, try to ensure the sample is taken as close to the bearings as possible. In addition, ensure that the sampling method is precisely controlled with the same method used every time, including flushing volumes. You might also need to tighten your alarms considerably to the extent where “normal” really means 0 ppm of tin (and other key elements), and any slight increase (even just 1 to 2 ppm) is considered “cautionary.”

Other possible causes of the low wear metal limits could be a failure mechanism, which really doesn’t generate significant amounts of wear debris, or one that creates larger sized particles (in excess of 5 microns), which do not show up in conventional elemental spectroscopy techniques. However, given the nature of this application, dilution is the most likely cause.

While most lubrication teams grasp the importance of good oil sampling, they are not exactly sure how to address the specifics. The good news is that instituting a quality oil sampling program in a plant is generally a relatively inexpensive exercise with high, short-term paybacks. If you haven’t instituted a world-class oil sampling program, now is a good time to start. If a sampling program is in place, maybe now is the right time to review it for compatibility with reliability goals. Don’t let a poor oil sampling program shoot your oil analysis program from the sky.

Probably one of the most essential elements to any successful oil analysis program is credibility. After you establish credibility in a program, you must maintain the credibility. Any knowledgeable predictive maintenance person will agree that how internal customers view the program can determine if the program is a hero or a zero. When establishing credibility in any oil analysis program, consider these points:

✓ Credibility in any oil analysis program is some what political. One of the best ways to avoid this phenomenon is education.  Management, operations, maintenance, and others may view the program differently.  The oil analysis may be forced on them just because it’s part of the current maintenance strategy. As a result, you want to educate everyone on what oil analysis is and isn’t, tailored to each level within the company to reduce any political issues.  Having personnel handling your oil analysis program who can communicate clearly and properly is of utmost importance. When someone asks a question concerning his oil analysis program, he needs and deserves a frank, understandable, truthful answer.  Acronyms, such as PC and FTIR, are foreign terminology to most people outside the oil analysis realm.  Most managers don’t have time to listen to a lesson in oil analysis.  They just want to know if their oil is good and if their equipment is goingto fail or be reliable until the next sample frequency.  For example, simply stating, “Contamination level of foreign particulates exceeds our desired level and oxidation has caused the viscosity of the oil to raise past a safe level for this machine” is much easier to understand than getting bogged down in technical terms, such as telling your manager that “The PC is 21/19/16 and the VIS has raised 20 percent.”

Lubricant related equipment failures come in all shapes and sizes.  Here we will examine the common lubricant problems that often lead to premature failure.

Insufficient Lubrication Proper lubrication is defined as the proper amount of the proper lubricant at the proper place.  If oil levels are low, or the lubricant delivery system is inadequate, a proper oil film cannot be maintained at the friction surface.  This results in metal to metal contact and accelerated wear.  Sufficient lubrication can only be achieved when oil levels are correct, and the appropriate lube system is in place and functioning properly.

Lubricant Degradation Nature takes its toll on all of us, and lubricants are no exception.  Oxidation breaks down the base oil of a lubricant, additives re depleted, and physical properties change over time.  This process is accelerated by high temperatures, heavy loading, and contamination.  When a lubricant reaches the end of its useful life, it is no longer capable of protecting equipment components.  Steps must be taken to ensure healthy lubricant is in use at all times.

Contamination Contaminated lubricants account for nearly half of all lubricant related failures.  Lubricants can become contaminated with either solid or fluid contaminants. Solid contaminants can act as abrasives causing severe damage to components.  Solids can also clog filters and orifices restricting oil flow and resulting in lubricant starvation.  Fluid contaminants such as water will alter the load handing ability of an oil, and can act as a catalyst to lubricant degradation.  Many fluids also cause internal corrosion and rust.  Proper filtration must be maintained, and sources of potential contamination should be identified and controlled to ensure the cleanest lubricant possible.

The Foam Test measures the foaming tendency of a lubricant. According to this test, also referred to as ASTM D892, the tendency of oils to foam can be a serious problem in systems such as high-speed gearing, high-volume pumping, and splash lubrication. Inadequate lubrication, cavitation, and overflow loss of lubricant can lead to mechanical failure. This test evaluates oils for such operating conditions.

Cavitation is the formation of air or vapor bubbles in the fluid due to lowering of pressure in a liquid, which then collapse (implode) in the higher-pressure regions of the oil system. The implosion can be powerful enough to create holes or pits — even in hardened metal — if the implosion occurs at the metal surface. This type of wear is most common in hydraulic pumps, especially those that have restricted suction inlets or are operating at high elevations.

Foaming is a fundamental physical property of a lubricating fluid. Foam can degrade the fluid’s life and performance as well as that of the equipment being lubricated. Even though foam performance often is a defined specification for the new fluid, it’s often ignored on used fluid. You need to understand the reasons for loss in foam control and the methods of controlling this property in a used fluid.  A fluid’s foaming property is measured using ASTM D892, which measures foam by three sequences that differ only in testing temperature.

Sequence I measures the foaming tendency and stability at 24°C (75°F).

Sequence II uses 93.5°C (200°F).

Sequence III uses the same conditions as Sequence I, except it’s performed on fluid that has just been measured in Sequence II.

The fluid sample from Sequence I isn’t used in Sequence II. The fluid sample used in Sequence II is carried into Sequence III.

A wealth of information is available on your oil analysis report about wear behavior, contaminants entering the system, and the service needed.

As you read your oil analysis report, ask yourself what all the data means. Ask yourself other questions like: Where is contaminant debris coming from in this unit? What am I looking for that will help me see what is happening inside my machine? Am I looking at elemental levels that are from the additives, particles being picked up as the oil circulates, or from external contaminant ingression?  These elements — iron, chromium, aluminum, copper, lead, tin, nickel, antimony, silver, titanium, and manganese — commonly indicate component wear. On your oil analysis report, some elements are singled out such as copper or iron and given special attention.

Elements found in your oil sample are measured in parts per million (ppm), a very small amount. A single ppm is equivalent to 0.0001 percent. To put that in perspective, it takes 10,000 ppm to equate to 1.0 percent. Concentrations seen in oil analysis reports will be from one to several thousand ppm.

Measuring Metals: Elemental Spectroscopy Elemental spectroscopy determines the concentration of wear metals, contaminant metals, and additive metals in a lubricant.  With this test, an energy source excites atoms in a sample, causing them to release energy in the form of light. A spectrum is created with different wavelengths for each element. The instrument then quantifies the amount of energy emitted and determines the concentration in parts per million (ppm) of 20 to 30 elements present in the sample.  Two types of elemental spectrometers are commonly used in oil analysis:

Arc emission spectrometers: They apply energy in the form of an electric arc to the sample. As the atoms are excited, each element emits light at a characteristic wavelength. The intensity of light at each wavelength is measured and quantified.

Inductively coupled plasma (ICP) spectrometers: They operate on a similar principle, except that the energy is applied to the sample by an argon flame rather than an electric arc.

Technical Bulletin New Material Identification Analysis Testing

TESTOIL has developed the Material Identification Analysis using Full Spectrum IR technology to analyze your mystery sludge and particles. A  solid deposit in a fluid system or a plugging filter is direct evidence of some sort of irregularity and a thorough analysis of this evidence can be extremely valuable in determining severity and root cause.

Why Use Material Identification Analysis? When foreign materials appear in a sump or on a filter, the cause is not often obvious. Standard fluid testing may not be able to point to any specific problem. With the right analysis, this material can provide valuable evidence of a chemical problem with the fluid, mechanical problem with the machine, or external contamination into the fluid system.

Test Procedure In most cases, sample portions are analyzed by ATR-FTIR.  In this technique, infrared light is reflected off the surface of a sample and a transmission spectrum is generated.  Different molecular structures will absorb different frequencies of light.  By studying a transmission spectrum, one can observe which frequencies were absorbed and characterize the molecules present.