Fuel economy is a crucial aspect of modern vehicle maintenance and fleet management. With rising fleet fuel costs and ever-tighter environmental regulations, achieving better fuel efficiency has never been so important. The lubricant in use is often an overlooked...
Many people emphasize the impact of particle and moisture contamination on equipment reliability, but few consider how air might affect their equipment. While usually benign, excessive air entrainment can lead to many issues, including rust, cavitation, oil leakage,...
Grease guns seem simple enough. But how well do you know yours? Do you know how to correctly cartridge and bulk load your gun? Do you know how to expel trapped air from it? Do you know its shot size in cc or cu in (e.g., in cubic centimeters or cubic inches)? Do you...
Years ago, I had my first encounter with one of the predictive maintenance technologies. Since then, I have seen its potential, especially when combined with other PdM tools. Airborne ultrasound for bearing inspection is probably one of the simplest, most versatile...
Additives can enhance, suppress, or add new properties to oils. Defoamants, dispersants, and detergents are no exceptions. This trio of additives can be found in most finished lubricants, albeit in varying ratios. Let's discuss the main differences among these three,...
Pour Point Temperature – What Is It? The Pour Point Temperature is the temperature below which an oil loses its flow characteristics. It can be found in most Product Data Sheet (PDS) for an oil and in "Section 9: Physical and Chemical Properties" of the Safety Data...
One of the goals of Root Cause Analysis (RCA) is to identify the factors leading to an event that resulted in an undesired outcome and to develop corrective actions to prevent such results from recurring. In maintenance, recognizing patterns during analysis can...
Flash Point Temperature – What is it? The Flash Point of a substance or material is the "lowest liquid temperature at which, under certain standardized conditions, a liquid gives off vapors in a quantity such as to be capable of forming an ignitable vapor/air...
Antioxidants are additives that increase the oxidative resistance of the base oil to prolong lubricant life. They help prevent or reduce lubricant oxidation and work collaboratively with other additives in finished lubricants. Understanding Oxidation: The Basis for...
Oil testing and analysis provide vital information on the condition of the oil and the equipment and can diagnose the causes of problems. Wear particles and contamination concerns can be identified using several methods. Going beyond routine oil analysis tests such as...
