Chapter 3 Lubrication Formulation and Lubrication Selection

LECTURE 6
CHAPTER 3
LUBRICATION REGIME AND LUBRICATION
THEORY
Hydrodynamic Lubrication: https://youtu.be/MGbbSxZTdCQ
Lubrication Theory: https://youtu.be/149lO_K3YkM
https://youtu.be/TC57XMMSRqY
MOHAMAD ALI AHMAD

Level 11, Room 11A
012-3319244
mohama9383@salam.uitm.edu.my
alie_76_02@yahoo.com
MEC – 642 Lubrication in Machine Elements

Adapted from Tribology in Practice Series – Third Edition
A. R. Lansdown
Prepared by:
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Salmiah Kasolang@Kasalung
© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 2

1. Base oil (Natural, Mineral and synthetic)
2. Fluid Lubricants (Lubrication Oil, Grease and
Gas
3. Lubricant Oil Selection
4. Grease Selection

 Reducing friction and wear
 Keep machine parts apart
 Cooling of machine parts
 Preventing Corrosion
 Transporting foreign particles
 Transport heat
 Transport power
 Protect against wear

 A substance introduced between two surfaces
often to reduce friction and wear.
 Forms of lubricants
 Liquid (SAE Oil; grease; water)
 Gas (pressurised air)
 Solid (graphite; TFE; molybdenum disulfide)
 Basic classes of lubricant
 Oils – minerals, natural, synthetics, emulsions, or process
fluids.
 Greases – semi solid oils with thickening agents
 Dry lubricants – any lubricant in solid forms (bulk solid, paint-
like coatings, and loose powders)
 Gases – air and harmful gases.

Lubricant Property Oil Grease Dry Lubricant Gas
1 Hydrodynamic lubrication Excellent Fair Nil Good
2 Boundary lubrication Poor to excellent Good to excellent Good to excellent Usually poor
3 Cooling Very good Poor Nil Fair
4 Low friction Fair to good Fair Poor to good Excellent
5 Ease of feed to bearing Good Fair Poor Good
6 Ability to remain in bearing Poor Good Very good Very poor
7 Ability to seal out contaminant Poor very good Fair to good very poor
8 Protection against atmospheric corrotion Fair to excellent Good to excellent Poor to fair Poor to good
9 Temperature range Fair to excellent Good Good to excellent Excellent
10 Volatility Very high to low Generally low Low Very high
11 Flammability Very high to very low Generally low Generally low Unlimited variation
12 Compatibility Very bad to good Fair to good Excellent Generally good
13 Cost of lubricant Low to very high Fairly high to very high Fairly high Generally very low
14 Complexity of bearing design Fairly low Fairly low Low to high Very h igh
Deterioration and
15 Life determined by contamination Deterioration Wear Ability to maintain gas supply

Problem Possible Solutions
High Load more viscous oil; extreme-pressure oil; grease; dry lubricant.
Speed to high
(may increase more oil or oil circulation; less viscous oil; gas lubrication.
temperature)
Temperature too additive or synthetic oil; more viscous oil; more oil or oil
high circulation; dry lubricant.
Temperature too low less viscous oil; synthetic oil; dry lubricant; gas lubrication;
Too much wear

more oil or oil circulation
debris
Contamination oil circulation system; grease, dry lubricant.
more viscous oil; additive or synthetic oil; more oil or oil
Longer life needed
circulation; grease.

Solid Lubricant
Increasingspecific load
Increasing speed
Grease
(contact pressure)
Oil
Decreasing Viscosity
Gas

Machine Components
Lubricant Property
Plain Rolling Enclosed Open Clock and
Journal Bearing Gears Gears Instrument
Boundary lubricating properties 1 1 3 3 2
Cooling
Coolilng 2 2 3
Low friction 1 1 2 2 2
Ability to remain in bearings 1 2 3 3
Ability to seal out contaminants 2 2
Temperature range 2 2 2 1
Protection against corrosion 2 2 1 3
1 = little importance; 2 = less importance; 3 = greatest importance

(minerals, natural, synthetics, emulsions, or process fluids)
Natural Oils:
Animal fats, shark oil, whale oil, and vegetable oils.
 Good boundary lubricants but less stable with temperature and
oxidation than mineral oils.

 Maximum temperature up to 120˚C
 When break down, they give sticky deposits.
Mineral (petroleum) Oils:

 Excellent boundary lubricants and the most widely used.
 Maximum temperature up to 130 ˚C and 200 ˚C for super-refined
oils.
 Main content of chemical compounds: hydrocarbons.
 Main types (chain): straight paraffin, branched paraffin, naphthene,
and aromatic.

(minerals, natural, synthetics, emulsions, or process fluids)
Synthetic Oils:
 Developed oils to meet high demands of advancement in engineering
(high speed, high temperature, high load, high humidity high

performance etc.)
 Temperature can be up to 370˚-430 ˚C (short period)
 But more expensive than mineral oils
 Different classes
◦ Synthetic hydrocarbon
◦ Chlorofluorocarbons
◦ Silicones
◦ Silanes
◦ Polyphenyl ethels
◦ Perfluoropolyethers

 SAE number, code for specifying the viscosity of
lubricating oil, established by the U.S. Society of
Automotive Engineers. The numbers
 for crankcase lubricants range from 5 to 50,
 for transmission and axle lubricants they range from
75 to 250;
 the lower the number, the more readily the oil flows.
 The suffix W indicates that the oil is suitable for winter
use. W oils are rated according to their flow rates at 0°
F (-17.8° C); other types are tested at 210° F (99° C).
 Multirated oils, such as 10W–30, contain additives that
oppose the tendency to thicken at low temperature,
making the same oil satisfy both summer and winter
requirements

In practice, many factors have to be considered to
ensure that the oil continues to function as
intended. List of important factors are as follows,
 Thermal (temperature) stability
 Chemical stability
 Compatibility
 Corrosiveness
 Thermal or heat conductivity
 Heat capacity (specific heat)
 Flammibility
 Toxicity
 Environmental effects
 Avaiability
 Price

Boundary Lubrication:
 It is a concern when two surfaces are not completely separated
by an oil film. (asperities contact)
 Possible causes:
◦ Oil viscosity too low, bearing speed too low, or/and bearing load too high.
 Rubbing contact may be fairly gentle – mild wear.
◦ Wear takes place within surface oxide.
◦ Anti-wear additives: naphthenes, sulphur, aromatics or asphaltenes.
 Rubbing contact may be rigorous – severe wear
◦ Surface oxide may be completely removed
◦ Extreme-pressure additives – e.g. sulphurized mineral oil, cetyl chloride,
chlorinated paraffinic oils.
Note: The use of additives in oil means additional cost.

Oxidation:
 Most important form of chemical breakdown
 Due reaction of chemical substance in oil to
oxygen in air.
 Rate of oxidation varies between different
compounds:
 Most to least resistant: Paraffins, Naphtenes,
aromatics, additives, asphalthenes, unsaturates.
 The effects of oxidation are to produce
aldehydes and acidic compounds which can
cause corrosion, an increase in viscosity,
lacquering, tarry deposits, insoluble oxidation
products.

Contamination: Different Possible sources
 Water from condensation and combustion
 Unburned fuel in an engine
 Wear debris
 Dust from the atmosphere
 Process liquids
 Chemical in chemical plant.
 Soot from faulty fuel combustion
 Breakdown products of the base oil
 Corrosion products
 Breakdown of additives
 Organic debris from microbiological attack.

Contamination: Combined or synergistic action
 Dust, corrosion product, and wear debris –
increase wear and produce more wear debris.
 Acidic breakdown products and water – corrosive
mixture and generate more corrosion products;
form surface active mixture that emulsify with oil
and block feed holes and filters; the same
emulsion makes a good medium for
microbiological growth.

Contamination: Solutions
 Controlling entry of contaminants
◦ Sealing or filtration
 Removal of contaminants
◦ Filtration (solid) and centrifuging (liquid)
 Dispersing contaminants
◦ Contaminants (soot and oil breakdown products) are
dispersed using dispersant or detergent additives to get
fine particles.
 Neutralization
◦ Acidic products are neutralize using basic additives such
as calcium compounds.

 Greases – semi solid oils with thickening agents to produce colloidal
structure or gel.
 Greases have much higher viscosity compared to oils but overall it is
effective.
 Composition of grease: Base oils, Thickeners, and Additives
Base Oils Thickeners Additives

mineral oils Sodium soap Anti-oxidants
Synthetic hydrocarbons Calcium soap Anti-wear additives
Di-esters Lithium soap EP additives
Silicones Aluminium soap Corrosion inhibitors
Phospate esters Lithium complex Molybdenum disulphide
Perfluoropolyethers Calcium complex Friction modifiers
Fluorinated silicones Aluminium complex meatl deactivators
Chlorinated silicones Bentonite clay VI improvers
polyglycols Silica Pour-point depressants
Carbon/graphite Tackiness additives
Polyurea Water repellants
PTFE Dyes
Polyethylene Structure modifiers
Indanthrene dye
Phthalocyanine dye

 The amount of greases needed to lubricant moving
parts is small.
 But typically greases are supplied in surplus.
 When system starts operating, the surplus grease is
swept clear of the region occupied by moving parts
and maintain that way if its consistency is right.
 If grease is too soft, it will reoccupy the region and
get churned repeatedly. This generate a lot of heat
and may cause thermal degradation of grease.
 Surplus grease serves two functions:
◦ As a reservoir to maintain small quantity
◦ As a seal to stop losing lubricant.

Consistency
 Consistency determines suitability of grease for particular application.
 Consistency is measured in terms of penetration of standard metal cone under standard conditions.
 Consistency is commonly described by the NLGI classification developed by the American National
Lubricating Grease Institute.
 475 – Soft grease; 85 – hard grease
Note:
Certain oil such as silicone oil is much NLGI Number Worked Penetration at 25 ?C
000 445-475
more viscous than grease with a
00 400-430
500 000 cSt viscosity value. But, greases
0 355-385
Do not change easily with temperature. 1 310-340
2 265-295
3 220-250
4 175-205
5 130-160
6 85-115

Effects of temperature
 Soap based greases: penetration increases with additional heat
until a certain critical temperature (Drop point) is reached where
gel structure break down (i.e. becoming liquid). In case, it the liquid
is cooled down, it will not go back to its original consistency.
 So, the operating temperature must not go beyond the drop point.
 There is also a lowest operating temperature for grease application
beyond which the lubricating property diminished.
 Oxidation in greases is not good just like in lubricating oils.
 Oxidized greases are usually darker and contains a increasing
acidic oxidation products which may cause degradation of gel
structure, softening, oil bleeding, and leakage.

Migration of Base Oil
 The base oil in greases can flow through the thickener network.
 This tendency is known as permeability but this is not common.
 Two situations whereby this may occur are:
 Grease is pumped through pipe: Sometimes the grease get stuck and the
pressure builds up causing the base oil to flow and leaves the thickener
behind.
 Two different greases present in the same system: When these two
greases are in contact, their base oils may migrate across the interface.
Compatibility
 Between two greases
 Between greases and machine components (e.g. rubber
seals and other non-metallic materials)
Contamination:

Compatibility
 Between two greases
 Between greases and machine components (e.g. rubber
seals and other non-metallic materials)
Contamination
 Grease can get contaminated by wear debris, dirt,
breakdown products (acidic oxidation), water, and other
liquids.
 Grease are applied with supply system and do not easily
transport foreign particles. Trapped foreign particles tend
to affect the lubricating properties and damage machine
components.
 Contaminations by water or other liquids may affect the
gel structure and hence the consistency of the grease.

The higher resistance of grease to flow are beneficial in the
following situations:
 The start-stop problems
 Squeeze film lubrication
 Sealing problems
 Supply of surplus lubricant
 Contamination of product
 Use of solid additives

The higher resistance of grease to flow are at disadvantage
in the following situations:
 Reduced cooling/heat transfer
 Poorer storage stability
 Lack of uniformity
 Compatibility
 Lower resistance to oxidation

Similar to oil, a gas can be used as lubricant.
 A gas has a much lower velocity relative to oil and thus gas dynamic
bearings are different from hydrodynamic bearings.
 Differences:
 The operating speed are higher
 The loads are lower
 The surface finishes are better
 The clearance are smaller to optimize load-carrying capacity and reduce gas
flow.
 This requires bearing tolerance to be very close.
 Alternative is an externally pressurized bearing
 they do not rely on speed to carry load hence the capacity is higher.
 Differ from gas dynamic in that:
 Can operate slowly or even stationary
 Can have poorer surface finish
 Generally both require a high precision engineering whereby specialist service is
required.

 Generally any gas will do provided it is clean and non-reactive
to materials in bearings system.
 If gas is contaminated, trapped particles can cause damage to
bearing surfaces and produce instability in motion.
 Contamination can also cause erosion.

Self-pressurizing gas bearings:
Aerodynamic bearings
Hydrodynamic gas bearings
Gas dynamic bearings
Externally pressurized bearings

Aerostatic bearings
Hydrostatic gas bearings
Gas-static bearings

Advantages:
 Wide temperature range
 High bearing stiffness
 Usable at very high speeds
 No requirement for special lubricant supply
 Clean in use
Disadvantages:
 Low load-carrying capacity
 Detailed design complicated
 Precise control of surface finished
 Need very clean gas supply
 Bearing surfaces easily damage by touch-
down in stop and start operation or
overloading.

Dentist’ drills
Precision grinding heads
Inertial navigation gyroscope

Thank you for your
attention
“Jika kamu inginkan dunia hendaklah dengan

ilmu,jika kamu inginkan akhirat hendaklah
dengan ilmu,dan jika kamu inginkan kedua-
duanya juga hendaklah dengan ilmu ”
(Imam Shafie)
Which lubricant class to choose?
 Typical lubricant as recommended by the manufacturer.
◦ If operating conditions (environment, speed, load, temperature etc)
are markedly different, the recommended lubricant may not work.
 Alternatively, need to assess the actual operating conditions
and relate to the capabilities of various lubricant types.
 If there are many alternatives, go for a simplicity in the system
involved.
◦ This often means a higher reliability and cheaper.
 Start with using a small quantity of plain mineral oil or grease
with no feed system required.
 If it does not work, follow a common advice.

 Avoiding the cost of lubricants
and the required system.
 Making the system simpler is
more important (otherwise,

need pumps, seals, filler caps,
grease nipples or drain points).
 Avoiding contamination of
products or environment.
 Avoiding a build-up of debris.

 Use of elastomeric material such as a
rubber block to accommodate
misalignment in a rotating shaft.
Limitation is on temperature buildup with
higher speeds, loads, and amplitudes.
 Use of metal bellows – e.g. in coping with
relative expansion and contraction of

exhausts.
 Use of existing fluid intended for other
purposes. - e.g. atmospheric air

How to choose which oil to use?
Important stages:
1.Selection of the type of base oil
2.Choosing the oil viscosity
3.Defining the boundary lubrication requirements
4.Identifying other required properties and additives.

90% of lubricants are based on mineral oils
 Availability
 Low cost
 Suitability for many applications
Naphthenic Oils
Advantages:
 low temperature
 Better solvents than paraffinic oils
 Easier to dissolve and disperse many additives
 Better at keeping contaminants and degradation products in
solution
 Lower cost
Disadvantages:
 Poor with high temperature

Paraffinic Oils
Advantage:
 High temperature application
 High viscosity index
 Good oxidation resistance
Disadvantage:
 poor solvents than paraffinic oils
 hard to dissolve and disperse many additives
 poor at keeping contaminants and degradation products in
solution

Two concerns:
Temperature (Figure 3.5 and 3.6)
 High temperature oils as good lubricants: synthetic
hydrocarbons, polyglycols, di-esters and polyol esters.
 Synthetic hydrocarbons – widely used in engine oils and
industrial applications.
 Di-esters polyol esters – widely used in aircraft gas
turbine engine lubricants.
 Polyglycols – gear lubricants; also used in oven or
furnaces (when decompose, leave no deposits of carbon
or ash).
 Silicones, polyphenyl ethers and perfluoropolyethers –
poor boundary lubrication performance thus only use
for low contact pressures or full film separation.

Two concerns:
Fire resistance
1. Water containing oils – temperature range, 0 ˚C to 80 ˚C.
 Oil in water emulsions – 5% mineral oils, poor lubricants but good for
hydraulic fluids (HFB Fluids)
 Water in oil emulsions – 30% water, effective fire resistant properties
and good lubricants, also used as HFB fluids.
 Water polyglycol fluids – 30-60% of water, effective fire resistant and
good lubricants.
2. Synthetic oils – temperature range up to 130˚C – 300˚C
 Phosphate esters – excellent fire resistant and excellent lubricant (only
up to 130 ˚C)
 Perfluoropolyethers – excellent fire resistant (up to 300˚C ) but poor
lubricants and extremely expensive.
 Clhorinated biphenyls – excellent fire resistant (145˚C) and good
lubricant.

 Automotive engine oils
 Vehicle transmission lubricants (e.g. gearbox
bearings)
 Metal working lubricants (i.e. between contact tools
and workpiece)
 Extrusion, tube drawing and wire drawing
 Rolling
 Metal cutting

Application depends on 3 factors:
 types of component
 Temperature
 Environment
General solution is to use ‘multi-purpose grease’,

usually NLGI No. 2 mineral oil grease (often lithium
hydroxystearate or aluminum complex-thinkened)

General advice:
Always follow recommendations by the
manufacturers which may include:
 Type of base oil
 Type of thickener
 Consistency
 Base oil viscosity
 Any requirement for EP additives
Else

Types of components:
 Rolling bearings
◦ Speed – the higher the harder the grease (i.e. no. 3)

◦ Bearing size – increase size, increase grease no.
◦ Shock loads or vibration – use harder grease
◦ Temperature – low temperature, softer grade
◦ Centralized grease supply – softer grade
 Plain bearings
 Enclosed gears
 Open gears

Temperature
 Low temperatures
◦ Check the viscosity or pour point of the base oil
◦ Check the consistency (useful at low temperature)
 High temperatures
◦ Check the drop point
Environmental factors
 Vacuum (space craft, aircraft or vacuum equipment)
 Dirty environments (mining and quarrying)
 Clean environments (food, textiles, pharmaceutical industires)
 High fire risk situations (caol-mining, aviation, and certain
chemical process)

Re-supply or feeds system ensures that
fresh oil is being continuously applied
to the lubricated problems.
Advantages of oil supply system:
1. Replacement of used oil by fresh oil -
This extend oil change period
2. Removal of contaminants – Harmful wear
debris, contaminants etc. can be removed (e.g. by
filtering or centrifuging before fresh oil being re-
circulated
3. Cooling – removing hot oil and supplying cool oil
help reduce surface temperature

Oil feed system can be
differentiate by,
1.Degree of complication
2.Cost
3.Reliability
4.Effectiveness in achieving the
three benefits listed above.

Feed system can be broadly categorized
into four types:
1. Total loss (may or may not be
centralized)
2. Ring, disc and splash (self-contained)
3. Mist and fog (centralized)
4. Circulation (centralized)

Total Loss System:
 Supply a small quantity of oil (minimal)
 No system for control or collection of oil
 Simpler because no return line
 Disadvantage:
◦ No cooling effect
◦ No transportation of wear debris or other contaminants
◦ Wasteful because no recollection.
◦ Messy – oiliness of the equipment surrounding floors.

Total Loss System:
 Manual Supply
 Drip Supply
 Wick and Pad Lubrication
 Centralized Total Loss System
Manual Supply
 Advantages
◦ The simplest – hand held oil can
◦ Individual control of the amount applied
◦ Beneficial for distributed bearings/surfaces and weight is a concern
 Disadvantages
◦ Human weaknesses
◦ Feed point is too hot
◦ Feed point is out of reach
1.

Drip Supply
A drip feed from a reservoir mounted above the bearings/surfaces
 Advantages
◦ Simpler
◦ reduce labor as a reservoir requires less frequent filling
◦ Easier to apply compared to using an oil can
 Disadvantages
◦ Difficult to judge the amount applied and less control
◦ Thus, likely to over supply
◦ If a blockage occurs, may not be detected immediately
1.

Wick and Pad Lubrication
Suitable only for small or lightly loaded plain bearings. There are three different forms of wick (Fig. 5.2 a-
c). ‘Wick’ refers to a long shape and ‘pad’ for other shapes.
Mechanism – the wick or pad is wetted with oil which they transfer by direct contact to the rotating shaft
of the bearings or the outside of the porous bush/bearing.
 Advantages
◦ Cheap and widely use in low-duty applications
◦ Different designs are available
◦ Useful in dirty conditions whereby the wick or pad can filter dirt out of the oil
 Disadvantages
◦ Oil supply is limited thus not suitable for large or high speed bearings.
◦ Need to be monitored to replace wick/pad or replenish oil.
1.

Centralized Total Loss System
Recommended applications:
 A large number of bearings using the same oil
 Bearings are located close together, so that pipes are short
 Environment is not suitable for staff to enter
 Oil life is short, so that frequent oiling is needed.
 Advantages
◦ Better control of oil supply
◦ Better cleanliness of the oil
◦ Reduced required labor
 Disadvantages
◦ Complexity
◦ High initial and maintenance cost
 Different types
◦ Direct systems
◦ Indirect systems
1.

Important factors in designing a total loss system
1. Direct or indirect system
2. Flow rate
3. Monitoring supply

 Metal bellows are elastic vessels that can be compressed
when pressure is applied to the outside of the vessel, or
extended under vacuum.

Chapter 3 Lubrication Formulation and Lubrication Selection

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LECTURE 6

Hydrodynamic Lubrication: https://youtu.be/MGbbSxZTdCQ

Lubrication Theory: https://youtu.be/149lO_K3YkM

MOHAMAD ALI AHMAD

MEC – 642 Lubrication in Machine Elements

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Salmiah Kasolang@Kasalung

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 2

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 3

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 4

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 5

1 Hydrodynamic lubrication Excellent Fair Nil Good

5 Ease of feed to bearing Good Fair Poor Good

6 Ability to remain in bearing Poor Good Very good Very poor

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Too much wear

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Ability to remain in bearings 1 2 3 3

Ability to seal out contaminants 2 2

Protection against corrosion 2 2 1 3

1 = little importance; 2 = less importance; 3 = greatest importance

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 9

oxidation than mineral oils.

 When break down, they give sticky deposits.

Mineral (petroleum) Oils:

 Maximum temperature up to 130 ˚C and 200 ˚C for super-refined

 Main types (chain): straight paraffin, branched paraffin, naphthene,

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 10

(high speed, high temperature, high load, high humidity high

 But more expensive than mineral oils

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© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 12

 Thermal or heat conductivity

 Heat capacity (specific heat)

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Base Oils Thickeners Additives

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Externally pressurized bearings

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“Jika kamu inginkan dunia hendaklah dengan

© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 33

more important (otherwise,

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relative expansion and contraction of

purposes. - e.g. atmospheric air

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© Salmiah Kasolang 04/20/20 37