How often should oil in gas engines be changed?

31 May 2017
In: News

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There isn’t really a predetermined timeframe for changing oil in gas engines. The useful life of the oil depends on the type of gas, the capacity of the sump, the working conditions, the load, the temperature, the air-gas relation, the characteristics of the oil itself and of the condemnatory limits established by the manufacturer.

For example, manufacturers such as Caterpillar recommend changing oil after 750 hours whilst others, such as Guascor-Dresser, recommend changing in engines running on natural gas after 1,200 hours and in engines running on biogas after 700 hours.

Fundamentally, there’s never a good time to change the oil and it shouldn’t be predetermined by a calendar or number of hours, but by its status, which is highlighted during routine analysis.

Below you will find a table with the condemnatory limits suggested by different manufacturers.

Analysis Typical values of the majority of manufacturers Waukesha Caterpillar
Viscosity +/- 20% new oil -20%/+30% new oil + 3 cst new oil at 100ºc
B.N. 50% new oil and >2 50% new oil and >2 50% new oil
A.N. +2.5 of new oil +2.5 of new oil +2 new oil
Iph >4,5
Nitration 20 ab/cm 25 ab/cm 20 ab/cm
Oxidation 20 ab/cm 25 ab/cm 20 ab/cm
Insolubles > 1% > 1%
Glycol >200 ppm Undetectable Undetectable
Water >1000 ppm >1000 ppm >5000 ppm
Fe 20 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Cr 5 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Sn 5 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Al 10 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Ni 3 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Cu 15 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Pb 20 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Mo 5 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Si 4-7 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Na 25 ppm According to tendency According to tendency
Ca 50% new oil According to tendency According to tendency
Mg 50% new oil According to tendency According to tendency
B 50% new oil According to tendency According to tendency
Zn 50% new oil According to tendency According to tendency
P 50% new oil According to tendency According to tendency
Chlorine >800 ppm > 900 ppm

Table. Suggested condemnatory limits (standards are omitted)

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