Spectrographic oil analysis. A study of the relationship between top-up rates, observed wear element concentrations and apparent rates of wear (TM-DER-017)

The lubricating oil in a diesel engine accumulates metallic and organic debris during use. The observed concentrations of such contaminants are, however, profoundly affected by the amount of top-up oil added since the latter is "clean" and acts as a diluent. In addition, if the original oil in the sump...