Experimental Investigation of the Viscosity Parameters Ranges—Case Study of Engine Oils in the Selected Viscosity Grade

Artur Wolak, Grzegorz Zając, Kamil Fijorek, Piotr Janocha and Arkadiusz Matwijczuk
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Artur Wolak: Department of Quality and Safety of Industrial Products, Institute of Quality and Product Management Sciences, Cracow University of Economics, ul. Rakowicka 27, 31-510 Kraków, Poland
Grzegorz Zając: Department of Power Engineering and Transportation, Faculty of Production Engineering, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, ul. Głęboka 28, 20-612 Lublin, Poland
Kamil Fijorek: Department of Statistics, College of Economics, Finance and Law, Cracow University of Economics, ul. Rakowicka 27, 31-510 Kraków, Poland
Piotr Janocha: Flukar Rafinery sp. z o.o., ul. Uniwersytecka 13, 40-007 Katowice, Poland
Arkadiusz Matwijczuk: Department of Biophysics, Faculty of Environmental Biology, University of Life Sciences in Lublin, ul. Akademicka 13, 20-950 Lublin, Poland

Energies, 2020, vol. 13, issue 12, 1-20

Abstract: The primary objective of the research was to compare the viscosity parameters of the same viscosity grade engine oils, as declared by the manufacturers, to the actual laboratory measurements. The secondary objective was to briefly investigate (1) what kind of information oil manufacturers provide in the product data sheets of the studied oils, and (2) the potential savings resulting from the use of the energy efficient oils. The study material consisted of 42 selected synthetic engine oils that belong to the 5W-30 viscosity grade. Stabinger SVM 3001 viscometer was used to determine kinematic viscosity at −20 °C, 40 °C, 100 °C and 130 °C. The HTHS (high temperature high shear), CCS (cold cranking simulator), FTIR (Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy) and GC (Gas Chromatography) measurements were also performed for the samples that had the lowest and the highest kinematic viscosity. Large differences (5–25%) between oil producers’ declarations and the results of laboratory tests were found. Although all of the engine oils tested met the 5W-30 grade standards, the high variability of viscosity measurements needs to be reported. The difference between the oil with the highest and the oil with the lowest kinematic viscosity at −20 °C was 11,804 mm 2 /s. The outlying temperature-related viscosity profiles were recovered using Mahalanobis distances which identified 16 out of 42 analyzed oil samples as atypical.

Keywords: viscosity; engine oil; energy-saving; Stabinger (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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