Measuring the degree of cleanliness or contamination of a lubricant can provide insight into the condition of the machine and the lubricant itself.
The particle count is considered one of the most important tests in the field of used industrial oil analysis, as it determines a wide variety of problems quickly and easily, monitoring the amount and size distribution of the particles in an oil sample.
The benefits of the particle count are listed below:
- It allows “on-condition” analysis of oil in the laboratory
- It confirms the corrective maintenance
- It identifies poor repairs of machinery
- It verifies it the operation of the pump
- It verifies it the operation of the centrifuge
- It confirms the system flushing
- It confirms the need for ferrographic analysis
- It monitors the wear of the machine
- It identifies abnormal gear wear
- It identifies the presence of abrasive wear
- It detects high corrosive wear
- It verifies the condition of the bearings
- It identifies excess sump gases in the engine
- It identifies the presence of atmospheric pollutants
- It verifies the degree of cleanliness of the lubricant stored and/or confirms the desired degree of cleaning
- It verifies the filter performance
- It determines the time of use of the filters
- It determines when the filters should be changed
- It identifies defects in new filters
- It verifies the suitability of the filter selected
- It recognises the condition of the by-pass filter
Lubrication Management recommends analysis ASTM D 6786 Suspended solid particle count (ISO 4406) to determine solid contamination in the lubricant oil.
