As with many things in lubrication, sometimes too much is as bad as too little. This is certainly the case with filtration. How Fine Is Too Fine for Your Oil Filter? To answer that, we need to look at several factors. First, let’s dispel a few myths about fine...
Varnish formation is one of the most critical and often overlooked challenges faced by industrial lubrication systems, especially in high-performance applications such as steam turbines, gas turbines, compressors, and precision hydraulic systems. Even when invisible...
Hydraulic presses in Oriented Strand Board (OSB) mills are central and indispensable to OSB production. They exert an immense, uniform force required to compress wood strands and resin into durable panels, operating under exacting temperature and pressure conditions....
Over the years, the one thing that has always struck me is how few reliability teams work with their counterparts in the Health and Safety and Environmental departments. Linking Lubrication to ESG and Sustainability Goals To quote the guru, Ron Moore, in his article,...
Over the past two decades, while conducting numerous Lubrication Benchmark Assessment audits across a wide range of industries—from Oil and Gas, refineries, petrochemical plants, and power generation facilities, I have witnessed one of the most neglected areas of...
Solid Particle Cleanliness In my previous articles, I have discussed how to achieve cleanliness within gearboxes and pumps, examining the entire aspect of solid particulate contamination ingress. However, I was recently asked by an engineer following the above...
Condition monitoring tools such as vibration analysis, ultrasound, oil analysis, and thermography are mainstays of a condition-based maintenance strategy, each providing a unique perspective on the health of critical rotating and reciprocating assets. Vibration...
When it comes to hydraulic systems, oil contamination is one of the most insidious and persistent enemies. It is estimated that about 80% of failures in these systems are directly related to fluid contamination. The issue goes beyond simply cleaning the oil; It...
Achieving proactive maintenance involves three key steps: setting cleanliness targets, implementing specific actions to meet those targets, and frequently measuring contaminant levels. This article focuses on the second step—specifically, how to choose the most...
Ugly. Torturous. Scourge. Devastating. Catastrophic. Insidious. These are just a few of the words used in papers and presentations to describe the effects of water in oil. You get the picture. For good reason, water has been called the second most destructive...
