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...
Look at the product data sheet for any full synthetic industrial lubricating oil, and you will likely discover that the base oil is a polyalphaolefin (PAO). These lubricants have become the backbone of high-performance lubricants for the better part of 50 years, with...
Industries that rely on hydraulic systems are often some of the heaviest consumers of lubricants, primarily due to their tendency to leak. While best practice would suggest that they identify and fix the leaks, many companies are either unable or unwilling to address...
Artificial intelligence (AI) has expanded to various fields, and the industrial area is no exception. In maintenance, AI has begun to automate processes and can improve the early detection of problems that cause unavailability in critical machinery, especially in...
