22/01/2015

BTSArticleCleanupyouroilandkeepitclean!

Articles
From4Q1999ORBIT,reprintedwithpermissionofBentlyNevada.
PrintablePDF*Version(346KB)

Cleanupyouroilandkeepitclean!

DaveWhitefield
PrincipalApplicationsEngineer
BentlyNevadaCorporation
Contaminatedoilkillsmachines.Cleanoilisoneofthemostimportantfactorsaffecting
theservicelifeofthelubricatedcomponentsofallmachinery.(Forthepurposesofthis
article,andinkeepingwithcommonindustrypractice,theterms"clean"and
"cleanliness"refertotheamountandsizeofparticulatecontaminationinalubricatingor
hydraulicfluid.)Inhydraulicsystems,cleanfluidisabsolutelyessentialforsuccessful
longtermoperation.Althoughmachinesequippedwithrollingelementbearingsare
especiallysensitivetoparticulatecontamination,machinesusingfluidfilmbearingsare
notimmunetosuchdamage.Manysourcescitedramaticimprovementsinexpected
machineliferesultingfromevenmodestimprovementsinlubricantcleanliness.
Thisallsoundsreasonable,andsmacksofcommonsense.Closerscrutinyrevealsa
fewquestions:
Howisoilcleanlinessquantified?
Howcleanis"new"oil?
Howcleandoesyouroilneedtobe?
Whatimprovementsinmachinelifecanyouexpectfromcleaningupyouroil?
Whataboutothertypesofcontamination?
Whatstepscanyoutaketocleanupyouroil?
Let'slookattheseissuesoneatatime.

Howisoilcleanlinessquantified?
ISO4406establishestherelationshipbetweenparticlecountsandcleanlinessin
hydraulicfluids(commonpracticehasextendedtheapplicationofthestandardto
lubricants).Thisinternationalstandardusesacodesystemtoquantifycontaminant
levelsbyparticlesizeinmicrometers(m).UsingISO4406,amachineowner/operator
cansetsimplelimitsforexcessivecontaminationlevels,basedonquantifiable
cleanlinessmeasurements.
ISOCode
10
11

Minimum
5
10

Maximum
10
20

12
13
14
15

20
40
80
160

40
80
160
320

16
320
640
17
640
1300
18
1300
2500
19
2500
5000
20
5000
10000
21
10000
20000
22
20000
40000
23
40000
80000
Table1:ISO4406fluidcleanlinesscodes(particles
perml.)
Table1illustratestheISO4406cleanlinesscodes.(TheISOstandardcallsthecodes
"scalenumbers."Youmayalsofindthemreferredtoas"rangenumbers"and
representedasR5/R15for2partcodesandR2/R5/R15for3partcodes.)This
standardallowsyoutoquantifycurrentparticulatecleanlinesslevelsandsettargetsfor
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BTSArticleCleanupyouroilandkeepitclean!

cleanup.Thecurrentstandardprovidesa3partcodetorepresentthenumberof
particlespermilliliter(mL)offluidgreaterthan2m,5m,and15m,respectively.
(ThecurrentstandardisISO4406:1987(E).TheISOisnowcirculatingadraftproposal,
ISO/DFIS4406:1999(E),forcontaminationlevelsmeasuredwithautomaticparticle
counterscalibratedinaccordancewithISO11171.Intheproposedstandard,thethree
partssignifythenumberofparticles/mLgreaterthan4m,6m,and14m,
respectively(scaleorrangenumbersR4/R6/R14).)Manylabswillreporteithera2
partcode,ora3partcode,asspecifiedbytheuser.The2partcodereferstoparticle
countsinthe5mand15msizeranges.A3partcodeof17/14/12wouldindicate
640to1,300particles/mLgreaterthanorequalto2m,80to160particles/mLgreater
thanorequalto5m,and20to40particles/mLgreaterthanorequalto15m.See
Table1andFigure1.NoticeeachstepintheISOcoderepresentseitherdoubleorhalf
theparticlecountrelativetoanadjacentcode.Itisimportanttonotethe"/"characterin
thewrittenformofthecodeismerelyaseparator,anddoesnotsignifyaratioofthe
scalenumbers.

Figure1:ISOcodeexample

Howcleanis"new"oil?
Studiesof"new"turbineoils,crankcaseoils,hydraulicfluids,andbearingoilsdelivered
tocustomersindicatevaryingdegreesofcleanliness,withISOcodesfromalowof
14/11,toashighas23/20.Drumdeliveredproductsweregenerallyfoundtobecleaner
thanbulkdeliveredproducts.ReferringtoTable1,youmightthinktwicebeforeputting
"new"oilwithanISO23/20measurementinyourmachine.Improperstorage
procedurescancontributeadditionalcontaminationtonewoil.Poorhandlingpractices
areanothersourceofnewoilcontamination.(Doyouknowwhattypesofvesselsare
usedinyourplantfortransportingandaddingmakeupoil?Aretheyascleanasyou
wantyouroiltobe?)Afterimplementingcleanupprograms,manyusersfindthedirtiest
oilintheirplantisincoming"new"oil.Itisclearthatproperfilteringofnewoilduringor
beforefillingisaprudentandhighlydesirablepracticetoextendmachinelife.

Howcleandoesyouroilneedtobe?
Machine/element

ISOTarget

Rollerbearing
16/14/12
Journalbearing
17/15/12
Industrialgearbox
17/15/12
Mobilegearbox
17/16/13
Dieselengine
17/16/13
Steamturbine
18/15/12
Papermachine
19/16/13
Table2:Typicalbasecleanlinesstargets.
Eachmachineclassshouldbeevaluatedforcleanlinesslevelsappropriatetothe
application.Ingeneral,machineswithtightclearancesand/orantifriction(rolling
element)bearingsbenefitgreatlyfromverycleanoil.Turbineelectrohydrauliccontrol
(EHC)systemsandmanyaeroderivativegasturbinesareexamplesofindustrial
machinesthatrequireextremelycleanoilforproperperformanceandlonglife.Filter
systemsratedtoremoveparticlesassmallas3mto7marecommonlyusedin
suchapplications.Hydraulicsystems'targetsshouldalsobeadjustedtocleanerlevels
forhighersystemoperatingpressures.(Seerelatedarticle,"LubricationAstrategic
partofassetmanagement"onpage6.)
Table2presentssometypicalbaselubricatingoilcleanlinesstargetsforcommon
machinesandmachineelements.Likemostguidelines,thesetargetsaresuggestedas
startingpoints.Youwillprobablymakeadjustmentstotheselevelsasyoulearnhow
yourmachinesrespondtocleanerlubricants.

Whatimprovementsinmachinelifecanyouexpectfromcleaningup
youroil?
Whileitmayfeelgoodtoknowyouhavecleanoilinyourmachines,howgoodcanyou
affordtofeel?Theanswertothisquestiondependstosomedegreeonthespecific
machineapplication.However,studiesperformedinmanyindustriesallshowdramatic
extensionsinexpectedmachinerylifebyimprovinglubricantcleanliness.Inone
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example,areductionofparticleslargerthan10mfrom1000/mLto100/mLresulted
ina5foldincreaseinmachinelife...anattractivereturnonyourcleanupinvestment.An
additionalbenefitofcleaneroilisalowernoisefloorforwearparticledetection
measurements.It'smucheasiertodetectsubtlechangesintheamountofweardebris
inacleansystemthaninadirtyone.
SocietyofAutomotiveEngineers(SAE)studieshaveshownenginewearreductionsof
50%whenfilteringcrankcaseoilto30m,and70%whenfilteringto15m,as
comparedwithfilteringto40m.Byimplementingsomeofthemeasuresoutlinedin
thisarticle,youwillsoonbeabletodocumentyourownsuccessstories.

Whataboutothertypesofcontamination?
Asdestructiveasparticulatecontaminationcanbe,thereareothercontaminantsthat
alsocontributetooildegradationandprematuremachinewear.Ashortlistof"non
particulate"contaminantsincludeswater,coolants,fuels,andprocessfluids.Themost
commonoftheseiswater.Wateraloneisasignificantfactorinlubricantdegradation.
Whencombinedwithironorcopperparticles,waterbecomesevenmorepowerfulin
attackinglubricantbasestocksandadditives.Theadverseeffectsofwaterinoilinclude:
Lubricantbreakdown,throughoxidationandadditiveprecipitation.
Changesinviscosity,affectingtheabilityofalubricanttomaintainthefilm
thicknessnecessarytoprotectthelubricatedsurfaces.
Corrosion.
Acceleratedfatigueoflubricatedsurfaces.

Figure2:Effectofwateronrollingelementbearinglife
Evenverysmallamountsofwatercanbeharmfulinmachinesequippedwithrolling
elementbearings.Typicallifereductionofrollingelementbearingscausedbyvarious
concentrationsofwaterinoilisdepictedinFigure2.
Lubricantfilmthicknessinfluidfilmjournalbearingsissubstantiallylargerthanthat
foundinrollingelementbearings,andhydrodynamicpressuresaretypicallylower.
However,thebabbittinthesebearings,beingcomposedprimarilyofleadandtin,is
susceptibletooxidationdamagefromwaterandoxygen.Watercanalsoreducethe
loadcarryingcapacityofafluidfilmbearinglubricantsufficientlytocausejournalto
bearingcontact(wiping).Thereductioninfilmthicknessalsoincreasesthesensitivityof
fluidfilmbearingstoparticulatecontaminants.

Whatstepscanyoutaketocleanupyouroil?
Let'ssayyouarenowconvincedthatcleanupisthewaytogo,butyoudon'tknowhow
togetthere.Filtration,storage,andhandlingproceduresarethekeyareasto
concentrateyourenergies.Theimportantelementsofasuccessfulcampaigntoclean
upyouroilsare:
Measureandevaluatecurrentcleanlinesslevelstoestablishbaselinesfor
comparison.
Examineandevaluateyourcurrentstorageandhandlingpractices.
Setcleanlinesstargetsbasedonyourgoalsforlongermachinelifeand/or
reducedmaintenanceanddowntimecosts.
Evaluate,select,andimplementtheimprovementsinfiltration,storage,and
handlingproceduresrequiredtoachieveyourgoals.
Measureandtrendyourprogress.(Don'tbeafraidtoadjustyourproceduresas
neededtomeetyourtargets.)
Documenttheimpactofyourinvestmentonavailability,maintenanceexpense,
andmachinelife.
Withtheseelementsdelineated,someofthepracticalaspectsofimprovingyour
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filtration,storage,andhandlingprocedurescanbeaddressed.

Improvingfiltration,storage,andhandlingprocedures
Poorfilteringpractices PoorStoragePractices Poorhandlingpractices
fillerneckscreenpunchedout. loosebung(drumcap).
dirtyfillpump.

Figure3

Figure4

Figure5

Manyimprovementstoyourfiltration,storage,andhandlingprocedurescanbemade
withminimalcost.Alittletimespentsimplyreviewingyourcurrentstorageandhandling
procedurescanberevealing(andinsomecases,evenshocking).Figures3,4,and5
illustrateafewproblemscommonlyseeninmanyoperations.Duringtheevaluation
phase,itisimportanttoidentifycontaminationsourcesaswellasthelevels.
Contaminationsourcesmayinclude:
Contaminatednewoil.Aspreviouslymentioned,newoilisoftennotascleanas
youmightthink,usuallybecomingcontaminatedduringtransportation,storage,
andhandling.
Builtincontamination.Machinecomponentscanbecomecontaminatedfrom
handlingpracticesencounteredduringoverhaulsorrebuildingprocesses.Itis
importanttoreviewshopproceduresrelatingtocleanlinessofinternalwetted
parts,hoses,andlubricantpiping.
Ingestedcontamination.Unfilteredsumpventsandfaultysealsarecommon
problemswhichcanresultincontaminants(includingwateraswellas
particulates)enteringthelubesystemfromtheoutsideenvironment.Minor
modificationstoventsystemscanreaprewardsinthisarea.
Internallygeneratedcontamination.Recirculatingwearparticlesthrough
machinecomponentscancreateaselffulfillingprophecyofmachinedestruction.
Normalfullflowfilteringremovessome,butnotall,wearparticles.Infact,many
fullflowfiltrationsystemsareonlyeffectiveinremovingparticleslargerthan40
m.Concentratingonthehardestandmostabrasiveparticlesisaneffective
strategyforthiscategoryofcontaminants.
Oncethecontaminationsourcesareidentified,youcanconcentrateontheareasmost
likelytogenerateyourtargetcleanlinesslevels.

Filtration

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Figure6:Portablefiltercart.
Offlinerecirculating("kidneyloop")filtrationsystemscanbeveryeffectiveinachieving
andmaintainingyourcleanlinesstargets.Insomecases,apermanentinstallationis
calledfor,withcontinuoussidestream("bypass")filtering.Inlesscriticalapplications,
wheresumpvolumesareusuallysmaller,thejobcanoftenbehandledwithacart
mountedportablefiltrationsystem(Figure6).Portablecartmountedsystemscanbe
usedatscheduledintervals,orinresponsetoincreasingcontaminationtrendsinyouroil
analysisdata.Portablesystemscanalsobeusedforprefilteringnewoilbeforeor
duringsystemcharging.Cartridgetypefiltersarecommononthistypeofequipment,so
youcaneasilychangetotheappropriatefilterelementforthespecificcleanlinesstarget
ofeachmachineormachineclassbeingserviced.Sincecrosscontaminationisa
possibilitywithportablesystems,filterchangesandadequateflushingareessential
beforeusewithadifferentlubricant.Maintainingseparatesystemsforeachlubricant
beingfilteredisanothersolutiontothispotentialproblem.

StorageandHandling
Improvementstostorageandhandlingprocedurescanoftenbeimplementedatlow
cost,relativetothebenefits.Controllingtemperatureoverarelativelynarrowrangeis
importantforproperdrumstorage.Drums"breathe"astheinternalpressureincreases
anddecreaseswithtemperaturevariations.Moistureandothercontaminantsareforced
intothedrumwhentheinternalpressuredecreases.Inmostclimates,thisproblemmust
beaddressedbystoringdrumsinenclosed,temperaturecontrolledstoragefacilities.
Shieldingstoragecontainersfromdirtandmoistureareotherobviousmeasuresthatwill
keepyournewoilingoodcondition.Beascarefulwithpumpsandtransfercontainers
aswithyourstoragecontainers.Thiswillminimizethechancesofcrosscontaminating
withotherlubricantsandintroducingcontaminantsintomachineswhentoppingorfilling.

Waterremoval
Sincethesourcesforwatercontaminationaresonumerousandubiquitous,eliminating
allsourcesofmoisturecanbeverydifficult.Removingwaterfromoilcanalsobea
challengingtask,butthereareseveralmethodsavailable.Eachmethodhasadvantages
anddisadvantages,soeachmustbecarefullyevaluatedfortheparticularapplication.
Someofthecommonmethodsforremovingwaterfromoil,alongwiththeirtradeoffs,
include:
Settling/Evaporation
Naturalgravityactsonthewatertoseparateitfromtheoil,andwater
escapesfromthefluidvianaturalevaporation.
Inexpensive.
Leasteffectiveofknownmethods.
Properlydesignedreservoirisrequired.
Onlyfreewaterisremoved.
Centrifuging(CentrifugalSeparation)
Onlythefreewaterformofwaterisremovedtoabout20ppmbyweight,
abovethesaturationpoint.
Entrainedgasesaren'tremoved.
Emulsifiedwatercontenttendstoincrease.
Dirtandothersolidsareremoved.
Additivescanberemovedbythismethod.
CoalescingFilters/Screens
Onlyfreewaterisremoved.
Acoalescingcartridgefilterisusedtoseparatethewaterfromtheoil.
Additivescanberemovedbythismethod.
Onlyeffectivefornarrowrangesofviscosityandspecificgravity.
Somemanufacturersclaim"Noremovalofadditives."
Filter/Dryers
Cartridgetypefiltersthatusesuperabsorbentmaterialstosoakupwater.
Dissolvedwaterisn'tremoved.
VacuumTreating(VacuumDehydrating)
Thewetlubricantisheatedinavacuumtoseparatethewater.
Additivesusuallyaren'tremovedfromthelubricant,sinceitisachemical
separation.
Dissolved,emulsified,andfreewatercanberemoved.
Whencombinedwitheffectivefiltrationmedia,capableofbeingahighly
effectivelubricantpurificationsystem.
GasSparging/AirStripping
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Thechemicalseparationprincipleofairstrippingisused.
Dissolved,emulsified,andfreewaterareremoved.
Additivesarenotremoved.
Nitrogenoraircanbeused.

Purchasingcleanoil
Anadditionalcleanupstep,whichisoftenoverlooked,istospecifythecleanlinesslevels
ofthelubricantsyoupurchase.Youmaypayalittlemoreupfront,butthesavingsin
machineavailability,filtrationcosts,andmachinelifeextensionoftenmorethanoffset
theadditionalcost.Ifyouchoosethisroute,besuretotesttheincomingoiltoverifyyou
getwhatyoupaidfor.

Conclusion
It'sbestnottotakeadministrationofyouroilslightly.Attentiontodetailisparamountin
achievingcleanlinesslevelsthatproducelargeimprovementsinmachinelifeand
availability.Whenitcomestomachinelife,lubricantcleanuphasproventobeoneofthe
simplerandmorecosteffectivemethodsofachievingmeasurableimprovement.Don't
waitforcontaminantstodestroyyourmachines.Cleanupyouroilandkeepitclean!

References
1. Toms,LarryA.,"MachineryOilAnalysis,2ndEdition",CoastalSkillsTraining,
VirginiaBeach,Virginia.
2. Fitch,J.C.,"OilAnalysisCourseManual",NoriaCorporation,Tulsa,Oklahoma.
3. "AGuidetoStandardsforContaminationSpecificationsinLiquids",Pacific
ScientificInstruments,HIACRoycoDivision.
4. "ISO/FDIS4406:1999(E)",InternationalStandardsOrganization.
5. "IndustrialOils",ChevronUSA,Incorporated.
6. "TheHandbookofHydraulicFiltration",ParkerHannifinCorporation,Parker
FiltrationDivision.
7. "MachineDesign,HowDirtandWater[Affect]BearingLife,"TimkenBearing
Company.
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