DF Sales&Marketing
Oil Tech Moderator
Everyone knows oil is important to your engine. But if you ask the average individual what exactly oil does, beyond saying it protects the engine, most don’t have a good idea of what oil really does.
oil lubricates. The moving metal parts in your engine have microscopic peaks and valleys left by tools. Oil keeps parts separated so they can work freely. When peaks contact opposing peaks, they break their tips, which accumulate in the oil as “wear metals.” oil suspends them to slow abrasion.
oil fights corrosion. Every gallon of fuel burned creates a gallon of water. Most goes out the exhaust as vapor, but some condenses on cylinder walls, especially in cold engines. Water circulates in the oil and corrodes parts. Water and contaminants like sulfur form acids, which oil neutralizes. Oil counters corrosion from water and acids.
oil cleans. Incompletely burned fuel creates soot, which with water makes sludge. Soot can be abrasive. Particles join with one another and grow to sizes that wear engines internally, especially when joined with wear metals. Sludge blocks oil passages and clogs oil control piston rings.
oil cools. While we think of radiator coolant as the primary method of cooling engines, oil actually cools more. Flowing rapidly through the engine and then to its own cooler, oil draws away up to 40 percent of engine heat.
oil seals combustion. Forces strong enough to propel a truck push combustion gases to the path of least resistance. They push pistons out of their way until the exhaust valve opens to provide an easier path. Gaps around piston rings are sealed against blow-by oil.
But wait, there’s more. To accomplish all these tasks, oil contains from 25 to 35 percent additives. The amount and quality determine whether the oil is considered “premium.” to lubricate, oil must be kept clean. Dispersants hold wear metals and soot in suspension, minimizing abrasion by allowing particles to flow through micron-sized spaces. Detergents are alkaline chemicals that dissolve sludge and neutralize acids. Total base number (tbn) measures the amount of detergent remaining.
Oxidation and corrosion inhibitors coat and protect engine parts & reduce sludge formation. Friction modifiers keep oil slippery. Anti-wear and extreme pressure agents protect parts chemically and by preventing lubricant from being squeezed out of tight places. Foam depressants keep oil from frothing as connecting rod ends and crank throws pass through oil in the sumps. Without them, foam would go to moving parts instead of liquid.
Viscosity index improvers keep the oil as thick as it needs to be when it’s warm, while allowing it to flow freely when cold. Without them, we couldn’t have multi-grade oils. Pour point depressants keep oil flowing in extremely cold temperatures.
That’s what’s in oil, and that’s what additives do.
oil lubricates. The moving metal parts in your engine have microscopic peaks and valleys left by tools. Oil keeps parts separated so they can work freely. When peaks contact opposing peaks, they break their tips, which accumulate in the oil as “wear metals.” oil suspends them to slow abrasion.
oil fights corrosion. Every gallon of fuel burned creates a gallon of water. Most goes out the exhaust as vapor, but some condenses on cylinder walls, especially in cold engines. Water circulates in the oil and corrodes parts. Water and contaminants like sulfur form acids, which oil neutralizes. Oil counters corrosion from water and acids.
oil cleans. Incompletely burned fuel creates soot, which with water makes sludge. Soot can be abrasive. Particles join with one another and grow to sizes that wear engines internally, especially when joined with wear metals. Sludge blocks oil passages and clogs oil control piston rings.
oil cools. While we think of radiator coolant as the primary method of cooling engines, oil actually cools more. Flowing rapidly through the engine and then to its own cooler, oil draws away up to 40 percent of engine heat.
oil seals combustion. Forces strong enough to propel a truck push combustion gases to the path of least resistance. They push pistons out of their way until the exhaust valve opens to provide an easier path. Gaps around piston rings are sealed against blow-by oil.
But wait, there’s more. To accomplish all these tasks, oil contains from 25 to 35 percent additives. The amount and quality determine whether the oil is considered “premium.” to lubricate, oil must be kept clean. Dispersants hold wear metals and soot in suspension, minimizing abrasion by allowing particles to flow through micron-sized spaces. Detergents are alkaline chemicals that dissolve sludge and neutralize acids. Total base number (tbn) measures the amount of detergent remaining.
Oxidation and corrosion inhibitors coat and protect engine parts & reduce sludge formation. Friction modifiers keep oil slippery. Anti-wear and extreme pressure agents protect parts chemically and by preventing lubricant from being squeezed out of tight places. Foam depressants keep oil from frothing as connecting rod ends and crank throws pass through oil in the sumps. Without them, foam would go to moving parts instead of liquid.
Viscosity index improvers keep the oil as thick as it needs to be when it’s warm, while allowing it to flow freely when cold. Without them, we couldn’t have multi-grade oils. Pour point depressants keep oil flowing in extremely cold temperatures.
That’s what’s in oil, and that’s what additives do.
