Diesel

[Howard LewisParticipant @howardlewis46836]

As long as the world uses machines, they will need lubricating.

The more sophisticated the machine, the more sophisticated the lubricant will need to be.

A lightly loaded, low speed machine might survive on vegetable oils (castril R was developed for what were then highly stressed engines) or evn tallow.  But for highly loaded bearings, subjected to high speed, a sophisticated mineral or synthetic oil will be required.

Some manufacturing processes need mineral oil as a lubricant, as the oinly easily and economically, available lubricant.  (We use soluble oils during machining, as lubricant and coolant)

So I think that the day when every oil well is plugged and abandoned is still some time away!

Howard

[Howard Lewis]

On Howard Lewis Said:

 

Some manufacturing processes need mineral oil as a lubricant, as the oinly easily and economically, available lubricant.

Howard

I think you made that up! 😆🤣😂

[Howard Lewis]

 

On Howard Lewis Said:

Vehicles that meet Euro 6 emissions regulations are pretty clean.

My, (Admittedly petrol) is Euro6 compliant and at each MOT the emissions measured are either Zero, or have 2 Zeros after the decimal point, to my surprise.

Have spent the major part of my life working in and around Development of Diesel engines, to meet increasing stringent emissions regulations. A lot of engines, for various reasons could not meet the newer regulations. One, because it was so efficient that it could not raise the exhaust temperature to the point where the catalyst lit off, and so failed the test!

(The change from one year to the next required a decrease of particulates by a factor of ten!) Compliance  requires a VAST amount of work and investment.

Being cynical, it could be argued that some engines, at one time, used turbochargers to provide excess air, for a blow down effect during valve overlap, to dilute the exhaust gases!

The urge to go diesel powered , although welcome, did not come from the industry, but from our “elders and betters”. Later administrations, possibly in possession of newer data, reversed that, and Industry, again, had to comply.

In Britain, pre emissions regulation, the target was always a Just Visible exhaust haze, not smoke.         In Britain, Rolls-Royce was trying to develp a smoke meter, based on opacity, but were beaten to market by Leslie Hartridge. The German Bosch smoke meter passed an exhaust sanple through a filter paper, and then measured the opacity, or the reflectance of the paper.

The acceptamce levels were 30% Hartridge or 3 Bosch, maximum.

In the USA the axiom once was “If she ain’t smoking, she ain’t pulling”, which probably accounts for the high incidence of lung cancer anong truck drivers.  Probably not helped by the habit of leaving engines idling all night to have a warm cab in the morning.

I know of one tractor manufacturer, who years ago, complained that the smoke levels were too low, so that the tractor could not be located from the homestead!

How things have changed!

Howard

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