Drop of knowledge #11

Ecol laboratory – what was happening in November?

1. 1. Engine oil testing as the key to the longevity of locomotives 🚂 →
2. 2. Oil change in transformers – stages, pitfalls, challenges →
3. 3. “Fleet Project” part 2 – how often to change the oil in a car? →
4. 4. Upcoming conferences we are attending →
5. 5. Element of the month →

1. Engine oil testing as the key to the longevity of locomotives 🚂

The study of engine oils from diesel locomotives is an effective tool for predictive and proactive maintenance strategy of rolling stock, helping to prevent unnecessary costs in maintaining machines.

Correct monitoring of oil condition, in regular analyses, allows to determine the right time to change the oil to fresh and to take the appropriate service action.

What parameters are key in the analysis of locomotive engine oils?

A properly selected scope of anaylsis should:

• provide information on the condition of the oil (the degree of advancement of the occurring degradation of the lubricant), i.e. determination of rheological properties (kinematic viscosity at 40°C, 100°C and viscosity index), alkaline reserve (base number), content of additives (ICP OES), possibly i-pH and acid number (AN, SAN),
• determine parameters related to the content of contaminants present in the oil, such as the presence of coolant, excessive amounts of soot (FTIR infrared spectroscopy), fuel (gas chromatography), and environmental contaminants (ICP-OES),
• assess the condition of lubricated engine components – testing the content of metallic particles (ICP-OES), the content of ferromagnetic wear particles (PQ index), which helps to track the dynamics of corrosion processes and wear of lubricated elements.

2. Oil change in transformers – stages, pitfalls, challenges

The process of filling a transformer with oil varies depending on the type of equipment, its capacity and its purpose. Oil values, vacuum depths, filling speed and other factors vary from case to case, requiring appropriate measures and procedures.

Welcome to our article, in which we discuss the main stages of the process, the key challenges, and present some statistics, related to the transformer oil change service.

3. “Fleet Project” part 2 – how often to change the oil in a car?

In part two of the ‘Fleet Project’ findings, we look at oil change intervals. In analysing the results, the following were taken into account:

• mileage since oil change
• fuel type
• oil type

We carried out our analyses by testing more than 100 samples of specific oil types from Ecol fleet cars, including Audi, Volkswagen, Ford, Citroen and Kia.

As a reminder: The aim of the ‘Fleet Project’is to analyse the degradation process of engine oils in Ecol’s company fleet vehicles.

The project aims to:

• Determination of internal limits of wear parameters for engines
• Understanding oil ageing degradation mechanisms
• Optimisation of the scope and duration of tests – definition of oil change intervals based on actual operational data and oil quality measurements

5. Element of the month

Copper (lac. cuprum) – is a semi-precious metal with a characteristic red color. Archaeological research proves that it was the first metal used by humanity to make tools as early as the 6th millennium BC.

Today’s technology uses both copper in metallic form and alloys in which the main component is copper (such as bronzes and brasses), as well as an addition to other alloys.

Copper detected in oil samples most often results from wear or corrosion of bearings, worm gears or radiators.