DETERMINATION OF OIL AGING AND OIL DRAIN PERIOD IN A SHIP DIESEL ENGINE

The engine environment causes chemical degradation of oil over a period of time. In addition of this, oil is contaminated by internal and external factors which change chemical structure of oil. Undesirable changes in the oil property may affect performance and may lead to failure of the mechanical components [1]. It is very advantageous to know the condition of an engine and its components without disambling the engine for examination. Beyond that, it is very important to determinate the useful lifetime of the lubrication oil in the internal combustion engines. The oil drain capability of the engines must be considered to properly estimate oil drain intervals for the equipment by using oil analysis methods and tecniques. In this paper, the chemical and physical analysis of used mineral crankcase oil is studied to predict the condition of the lubricant and engine wear components during continous operation. Examined oil samples were taken from a ship main diesel engine in this research. It is also concluded that the iron content of the used oil can be used to define the oil drain interval to optimize oil use in the engine and minimize the wear process.