This international standard was developed in accordance with internationally recognized principles on standardization established in the Decision on Principles

for the
Development of International Standards, Guides and Recommendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.

Designation: D8184 − 18´1

Standard Test Method for

Ferrous Wear Debris Monitoring in In-Service Fluids Using a
Particle Quantifier Instrument1
This standard is issued under the fixed designation D8184; the number immediately following the designation indicates the year of
original adoption or, in the case of revision, the year of last revision. A number in parentheses indicates the year of last reapproval. A
superscript epsilon (´) indicates an editorial change since the last revision or reapproval.

ε1 NOTE—A Research Report footnote was added editorially in June 2019.

1. Scope D4177 Practice for Automatic Sampling of Petroleum and

1.1 This test method describes the use of offline particle
quantification (often referred to as PQ) magnetometers to trend
wear rates in machinery by monitoring the amount of ferro-
magnetic material suspended in a fluid sample that has been in
contact with the moving parts of the machinery. It is particu-
larly relevant to monitoring wear debris in lubricating oils and
greases.
1.2 The values stated in SI units are to be regarded as
standard. Values of the burden (mass) of ferrous wear debris in
the sample are reported as a PQ Index. The PQ Index is a
numerical value that scales with the ferrous debris burden.
1.3 This standard does not purport to address all of the
safety concerns, if any, associated with its use. It is the
responsibility of the user of this standard to establish appro-
priate safety, health, and environmental practices and deter-
mine the applicability of regulatory limitations prior to use.
1.4 This international standard was developed in accor-
dance with internationally recognized principles on standard-
ization established in the Decision on Principles for the
Development of International Standards, Guides and Recom-
mendations issued by the World Trade Organization Technical
Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee.
2. Referenced Documents
2.1 ASTM Standards:2
D4057 Practice for Manual Sampling of Petroleum and
Petroleum Products
D4175 Terminology Relating to Petroleum Products, Liquid
Fuels, and Lubricants
1
This test method is under the jurisdiction of ASTM Committee D02 on
Petroleum Products, Liquid Fuels, and Lubricants and is the direct responsibility of
Subcommittee D02.96.06 on Practices and Techniques for Prediction and Determi-
nation of Microscopic Wear and Wear-related Properties.
Current edition approved May 15, 2018. Published June 2018. DOI: 10.1520/
D8184-18E01.
2
For referenced ASTM standards, visit the ASTM website, www.astm.org, or
contact ASTM Customer Service at service@astm.org. For Annual Book of ASTM
Standards volume information, refer to the standard’s Document Summary page on
the ASTM website.
Petroleum Products
D5185 Test Method for Multielement Determination of
Used and Unused Lubricating Oils and Base Oils by
Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrom-
etry (ICP-AES)
D6300 Practice for Determination of Precision and Bias
Data for Use in Test Methods for Petroleum Products and
Lubricants
D7720 Guide for Statistically Evaluating Measurand Alarm
Limits when Using Oil Analysis to Monitor Equipment
and Oil for Fitness and Contamination
3. Terminology
3.1 Definitions:
3.1.1 condition monitoring, n—the recording and analyzing
of data relating to the condition of equipment or machinery for
the purpose of predictive maintenance or optimization of
performance.
3.1.2 ferromagnetic, n—metals, alloys, and other materials
that exhibit medium to high magnetic permeabilities; further
classified into “hard” and “soft” magnetic materials when
capable of becoming permanently magnetized or not, respec-
tively.
3.1.3 inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectros-
copy (ICP-OES), n—a form of emission spectroscopy that uses
a plasma to excite atoms and ions that subsequently emit
electromagnetic radiation in the visible region; the emission
wavelengths are characteristic of a particular wavelength, and
the intensity of emission is related to the concentration of the
emitting element.
3.1.4 machinery health, n—qualitative indication of the
overall condition of equipment or machinery; may depend on
data and trend analysis from several sources.
3.1.5 PQI, n—a dimensionless index related to the ferro-
magnetic content of an oil or grease sample.
3.1.5.1 Discussion—The scale is defined by a 750 PQI
primary standard developed by The University of Swansea in
the 1980s. The original primary standard is currently in the

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 D8184 − 18´1
possession of Parker Hannifin Manufacturing Ltd.
(Littlehampton, UK) who manufacture and supply secondary
standards for instrument validation purposes.
3.1.6 rotating disc electrode optical emission spectroscopy
(RDE-OES), n—similar to ICP-OES, but the exciting medium
is now an electrical discharge between an electrode and a
rotating disc with the oil sample located within the discharge.
3.1.7 trend analysis, n—the interpretation of regular or
continuous (in time) condition monitoring data in order to
determine any changes indicative of deterioration or incipient
failure in equipment or machinery.
3.1.8 wear, n—the loss of material from a surface, generally
occurring between two surfaces in relative motion, and result-
ing from mechanical or chemical action, or a combination of
both.
4. Summary of Test Method
4.1 Lubricating Oils—A sample of oil is extracted from the
machinery and collected in a bottle to a depth sufficient to
exceed the flux field of the sensing coil in the instrument.
Distortion of the flux field due to the presence of any
ferromagnetic material is determined and a numerical value
(PQ Index) assigned to the extent of the distortion. This index
is related to the concentration and spatial distribution of the
ferromagnetic material within the sensing volume of the coil. If
the oil sample has been undisturbed for some time, this is the
same as the concentration within the bulk. However, if the
ferrous burden undergoes settling, for example, from an initial
well-shaken state, then the signal may exhibit a time depen-
dency due to debris mobility. It is possible to derive informa-
tion on the size (mass) of the debris from the rate of any time
dependent behavior noted.
4.2 Greases—A sample of grease is similarly extracted from
a bearing housing or similar and transferred to a small volume
(5 mL) pot.3 Reliable trending information requires the use of
the same size and shape of pot for reasons of consistency.
Mobility of debris within grease is restricted, the contents of
the pot are completely within the flux field of the sensing coil,
and no time dependent behavior is observed.
5. Significance and Use
5.1 This test method is intended for the application of PQ
magnetometry in assessing the progression of wear in
machinery, for example, engines and gearboxes, by trending
the mass of ferrous debris in samples of lubricating oils or
greases.
5.2 In-service oil analysis is carried out routinely by com-
mercial laboratories on a wide range of samples from many
sources and is accepted as a reliable means of monitoring
machinery health by trend analysis. In particular, the extent of
wear can be readily assessed from any changes in the ferrous
3
The sole source of supply of the apparatus (recommended grease sample pots)
known to the committee at this time is Parker Hannifin Ltd., Littlehampton, UK. If
you are aware of alternative suppliers, please provide this information to ASTM
International Headquarters. Your comments will receive careful consideration at a
meeting of the responsible technical committee,1 which you may attend.
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debris burden within periodically extracted samples as re-
flected in the PQ Index.
5.3 PQ measurements can be used as a means of rapidly
screening samples for the presence or absence of ferrous wear
debris, allowing quick decisions to be made on whether or not
to proceed to a more detailed spectroscopic analysis for
probable wear metals in the sample.
5.4 The use of standardized sample containers and a con-
sistent protocol enables reliable trending information to be
recorded. Although it is not possible to assign general limits or
thresholds for abnormal conditions, it is recommended that
interpretation of PQ values should be carried out in consulta-
tion with historical data, equipment logs, and/or service history
in order to formulate guidelines on individual items of machin-
ery. Guide D7720 is particularly useful in this context.
6. Interferences
6.1 Sample Related Interferences:
6.1.1 PQ instruments have a high sensitivity to the presence
of low concentrations of ferromagnetic materials in the test
--``,,`,,``,,,,`,,,```,,``````,-`-`,,`,,`,`,,`---
material (iron, steel, and so forth) due to their magnetic
susceptibility. However, large concentrations of high conduc-
tivity metals, for example, copper, can cause a small distortion
to the excitation field through the generation of eddy currents
in the debris particles. These eddy currents generate an
opposing ac magnetic field to the excitation field (Lenz’s law),
which causes an imbalance and hence a detectable signal. Note
that this phenomenon is several orders of magnitude lower in
effect than that due to the magnetic permeability of ferrous
materials. The presence of any suspected high conductivity
metal contamination can be verified or eliminated by, for
example, Test Method D5185.
6.2 External (Environmental) Interferences:
6.2.1 As noted in 9.2, the toner material in some printed
labels can contain iron powder and care should be taken to
eliminate this interference by careful label positioning and/or
the use of non-iron containing inks.
6.2.2 PQ instruments should not be sited on or close to large
metallic structures due to the possibility of field distortion
caused by their proximity, see 10.1.
7. Apparatus
7.1 PQ instruments are of a propriety design and currently
manufactured by Parker Hannifin Ltd., Littlehampton, U.K.4,5
The development of PQ test methodology began at Swansea
University in the 1980s. Instruments have been manufactured
under license, since the initial development, by Swansea Oil
Analysis Program (SOAP) Ltd., Analex Ltd., and Kittiwake
Developments Ltd, and a large number are still in operation in
4
The sole source of supply of the apparatus known to the committee at this time
is Parker Hannifin Ltd., Littlehampton, U.K.. If you are aware of alternative
suppliers, please provide this information to ASTM International Headquarters.
Your comments will receive careful consideration at a meeting of the responsible
technical committee,1 which you may attend.
5
PQ – GB trademark number 2210262 for “Apparatus and instruments for the
detection and/or quantification of wear debris in lubricating fluids and hydraulic
fluids,” applies to the instrument and not the measurement index.
2Licensee=Enex Chile S.A./5985366001, User=Ruiz, Francisco
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 D8184 − 18´1
many commercial laboratories. Current PQ instruments are
marketed and supported globally by Parker Hannifin Ltd.
7.2 A description of the apparatus and method can be found
in the patents listed in Related Materials. In brief, PQ instru-
ments comprise an excitation coil providing an ac magnetic
field with a frequency between 1 kHz and 10 kHz, two sense
coils arranged above and below the excitation coil and with the
sample sited close to one of the excitation coils. See Fig. 1 and
Fig. 2 for details. In Fig. 2, 11 and 13 are the sample and a
support plate, 2 is the excitation coil wound on a former (1), 3
is an oscillator driving this coil, 4 and 5 are the two sense coils
arranged in a differential manner (initially balanced by some
means to provide a null signal), with 6 through 8 providing a
means to detect and amplify any subsequent imbalance in the
two sense coils from the presence of wear debris in the sample.
9 is a display or recording device for this out-of-balance signal.
7.3 To measure the ferrous burden in a sample in the form
of the PQ index, the response of the instrument must be
calibrated against the primary standard. This will have been
done by the manufacturer who will also supply secondary
check standards to verify the long-term performance of the
instrument on an appropriate usage schedule. Consult the
manual for guidance on this matter. Note that the sample platter
also contains an embedded ferrous reference for the purposes
of compensating for any short-term drift.
7.4 A full operational cycle consists of three measurements;
zero PQI, embedded reference, and finally, the test sample.
This is achieved by rotating the platter on which the sample is
placed in a stepwise fashion, pausing at each position to make
the appropriate measurement.
8. Reagents and Materials
8.1 No reagents are required in order to determine the PQ
Index of a sample.
8.2 It is recommended that PQ instruments are regularly
calibrated and their performance monitored using the manu-
facturer’s recommendations and check standards.
FIG. 1 Principle of PQ Magnetometry (left) and a Modern Instrument (right)
--``,,`,,``,,,,`,,,```,,``````,-`-`,,`,,`,`,,`---
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9. Sampling, Test Specimens, and Test Units
9.1 In-service oil and grease samples should be collected in
accordance with the practices described in Practice D4057 or
Practice D4177. Oil samples should be transferred to clean
100 mL bottles or 5 mL pots and sealed (Fig. 3). Grease
samples should be transferred to 5 mL pots and similarly
sealed. Suitable containers are available from several manu-
facturers. For oil samples in 100 mL bottles, a minimum fill
depth of 40 mm is recommended (Fig. 4). The 5 mL pots
should be completely filled with either oil or grease samples; a
consistent approach with respect to sample volume in this step
will provide the most reliable results.
9.2 Note that certain printer toners and inks can contain iron
oxides. If it is required to attach printed labels to sample bottles
for identification purposes, it is recommended that either the
labels are sited well away from the measurement zone or that
the labels be prepared using thermal type printers, in order to
avoid erroneous measurements.
9.3 Check standards are available from the manufacturer to
use as test specimens for day to day validation and confidence
checking.
10. Preparation of Apparatus
10.1 PQ instruments are susceptible to variable temperature
effects and the presence of stray magnetic fields. They should
be sited in a stable, draft-free environment and kept well away
from any sources of electromagnetic interference, for example:
power supplies, generators, microwave ovens, loudspeakers,
and so forth. Note also that the close proximity of large steel or
iron equipment may also disturb the measurement field and PQ
instruments should not be sited near to gas cylinders or placed
on steel workbenches.
10.2 Sufficient time should be allowed for the instrument to
warm up and equilibrate after first switch on. The manufactur-
ers recommend waiting for a 2 h period before performing
tests. It is anticipated that most PQ instruments will be left in
a “permanently on/standby” state.
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 D8184 − 18´1

FIG. 2 PQ Instrument Schematic

FIG. 3 A 5 mL Pot (left) and 100 mL Bottle (right)

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FIG. 4 Recommended 100 mL Bottle Fill Depth

10.3 In addition, cold sample bottles may affect the instru-

ment when placed on the measurement platter, and they should
also be given sufficient time to equilibrate before performing
measurements.

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 D8184 − 18´1
11. Calibration and Standardization
11.1 PQ instruments should be regularly recalibrated using
the supplied secondary standards and the procedure detailed in
the manual to counteract any potential long-term drift.
11.2 Note that the rotating platter contains an embedded
secondary standard. As part of the test cycle, this embedded
standard is repetitively presented to the measurement coil and
used to correct for any short-term drift between cycles.
12. Conditioning and Sample Presentation
12.1 For bottle measurements, it is essential that the sample
is well homogenized prior to testing. This is best achieved with
laboratory shakers, although vigorous manual shaking is ac-
ceptable. A minimum time of 5 min is recommended, although
for viscous samples (for example, thick gearbox oils), this
should be extended to 10 min. The samples should be tested as
soon as possible after this homogenization process, preferably
within 1 h.
12.2 For pot measurements, no sample conditioning is
required, however the pot should be completely filled and
sealed with a cap prior to measurement.
12.3 For accurate and consistent results, it is important that
the bottle bottom, or lid if inverted measurements are
performed, should be perfectly flat and even. Any exterior pips
or protuberances left over from the manufacturing process
should be removed with a sharp knife or similar to ensure a
stable, non-rocking stance. It is worth noting that bottle lids are
often flatter than the bottle bases, and measurements are more
likely to be consistent when the bottle is inverted in the platter
aperture. Foil-lined lid-sealing inserts should be avoided when
carrying out these type of measurements in case of interfer-
ence.
12.4 In addition, the bottle or pot should maintain a con-
centric stance within the measurement aperture and not wander
FIG. 5 A 5 mL Pot (left) and 100 mL Bottle (right) with Appropriate Adaptor Rings
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around during the rotation of the platter. The correct adaptor
should always be used to ensure this, see Fig. 5.
13. Procedure
13.1 Bottle Samples—One recommended procedure is de-
scribed below with a further optional procedure for individual
laboratories to adapt as required. As noted previously the
laboratory temperature should be stable, preferably to within
62 °C.
13.1.1 Procedure A—This should be carried out within 1 h
of completion of the homogenization step in 12.1. The sample
bottle should be shaken vigorously for a minimum of 30 s so as
to distribute any ferrous wear debris evenly within the bulk and
then immediately inserted in an inverted manner (lid down-
wards) into the platter aperture. Two repeat measurements
should be taken and the average recorded as the PQ index of
the sample.
13.1.2 Procedure B—Time dependent PQ. Procedure A may
be adapted if information is required on the mass distribution
of the sample by recording measurements from the first until
the PQ value stabilizes. The time (or number of cycles) to
achieve this is indicative of the size (mass) of the debris with
larger debris requiring shorter times to settle. Individual
laboratories should determine if this procedure is useful and
experiment with shaking times and measurement cycles as
required to achieve consistency. Once both of these parameters
have been defined, a laboratory procedure should be written
and all subsequent measurements on received samples should
follow the same practice. More information is available in
Jones and Massoudi.6
13.2 Pot Samples—With the sample in 5 mL pots, the
sample is fully contained within the measurement field of the
6
Jones, M. H., and Massoudi, A. R., “The TDPQ: a solution to the analysis of
large wear particles,” Insight, Vol 37, 1995, pp. 606–610.
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 D8184 − 18´1
sensing coil and only one procedure is appropriate. It is the methods described in Practice D6300, the following preci-
identical to Procedure A above. Note that multi-stacker acces- sion statements can be written for the three samples:
sories are available to preload multiple pots for automated 16.1.1 Repeatability—The difference between two test re-
measurements on large numbers of samples. sults obtained by the same operator with the same apparatus
under constant operating conditions on identical test material
14. Calculation or Interpretation of Results would, in the long run and in the normal and correct operation
14.1 As noted in the procedures in Section 13, the PQ value of the test method, exceed the following values in only 1 case
to be returned is the average of two repeat measurements and in 20.
no further interpretation is required. Sample Mean Repeatability
Low value 100 4.2
15. Report Medium value 524 20.6
High value 3342 100.1
15.1 Sample PQ values should be reported as a numerical
index in rounded integer format from the average calculated in 16.1.2 Reproducibility—To be determined by a full inter-
Section 14. laboratory study.
16.2 Bias—There is no bias for the values reported in this
16. Precision and Bias7 test method as it is the only test that determines the PQ index
16.1 Procedure A—An interim repeatability study has been of an in-service oil or grease sample.
performed using three samples of iron powder dispersed in
16.3 Precision—The above interim repeatability statement
base oil representing low, medium, and high PQ values. Using
is only available at this time.
7
Supporting data have been filed at ASTM International Headquarters and may 17. Keywords
be obtained by requesting Research Report RR:D02-1901. Contact ASTM Customer
Service at service@astm.org. 17.1 ferrous wear debris; oil analysis; PQ Index

APPENDIX

(Nonmandatory Information)

X1. PQ IN PRACTICE

X1.1 Comparison with Iron Concentration from Spectro- discharge as the debris size exceeds a dimensional value of
scopic Determinations some 8 µm to 10 µm. Concentration levels may therefore be
X1.1.1 Iron concentration levels are often determined in the under-reported if the sample contains a significant proportion
laboratory by optical emission spectroscopic methods such as of such larger particles.
ICP-OES or RTD-OES. The following points should be noted X1.1.1.3 From a consideration of X1.1.1.2, if both PQ
when comparing trends in samples tested by PQ instruments values and ppm (by mass) concentrations are available for the
and these methods. same sample (for example, from ICP-OES), we may deduce
X1.1.1.1 OES determines iron in its “atomic” form and does the following approximate classification rules:
not provide any information on the chemical nature of the iron. (1) PQ high, ppm (by mass) low: indicative of large
It is therefore not possible to say if the measured iron content particles (>>10 µm).
can be attributed solely to elemental iron or an iron compound, (2) PQ and ppm (by mass) comparable: indicative of
for example, iron oxide (rust) or a combination of both. PQ medium particles (~10 µm).
instruments respond only to ferromagnetic materials: metallic (3) PQ low, ppm (by mass) high: indicative of small
iron and steel, for example. PQ is therefore more applicable to particles (<<10 µm).
the trending of wear progression patterns in hard bearing
elements, gears, and similar components. X1.2 Typical PQ Values for Different Types of Machinery
X1.1.1.2 Unless the oil sample has been treated to acid and Equipment
digestion, OES techniques have an upper limitation on the size
of the debris particles. This is due to the incomplete vaporiza- X1.2.1 Some guideline limits/values obtained through ex-
tion (atomization) of the particle in either the plasma or the perience with earth moving equipment are given in Table X1.1.

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 D8184 − 18´1
TABLE X1.1 Guideline PQ ValuesA
Equipment PQ OK PQ Caution PQ Abnormal
Engines <15 15–20 >20
Truck Final Drive <90 90–250 >250
Track Drives <165 165–700 >700
Differential Gears <100 100–200 >200
Transmissions <20 20–30 >30
Hydraulics <15 15–25 >25
A
Data from Machine Plant & Systems Monitor, Jan/Feb 2000, “How to maximize
PQ (particle quantifier) technology”, Ken Burnett, ANALEX International Ltd.

RELATED MATERIAL

Published Patents: GB 2269235 (1994), Wear monitoring by measuring ferromagnetic

The following patents are listed for further information. Note, all have particles in liquid
now expired. US 5404100 (1995), Method of quantifying wear particles in a lubricant
GB 2160655 (1985), Method and apparatus for assessing particle deposits sample

ASTM International takes no position respecting the validity of any patent rights asserted in connection with any item mentioned
in this standard. Users of this standard are expressly advised that determination of the validity of any such patent rights, and the risk
of infringement of such rights, are entirely their own responsibility.

This standard is subject to revision at any time by the responsible technical committee and must be reviewed every five years and
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if not revised, either reapproved or withdrawn. Your comments are invited either for revision of this standard or for additional standards
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make your views known to the ASTM Committee on Standards, at the address shown below.

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