Investigation into Extending Diesel Engine Oil Drain Interval (Part 1) - Oil Drain Interval Extension by Increasing Efficiency of Filtering Soot in Lubricating Oil

Analysis results of used oils sampled from many engines operating in the field show that the most critical factor governing the limits of oil use is insoluble fraction concentration in oil. Hence, the authors developed a new oil and by-pass oil filter to increase soot trapping efficiency, so as to extend oil change interval. Soot trapping efficiency could be improved from 30% to more than 80% using a bigger oil filter with fine mesh and a newly developed low soot dispersancy oil. Engine lubrication performance of the new oil was compared to that of standard and commercial long-drain oils by conducting 300-hour endurance tests on an 11.7 liter direct injection, turbocharged and aftercooled diesel engine at rated output. Test results proved superior engine lubrication performance of the new oil.

THE INTERVAL between lubricating oil changes for diesel engines is twenty to forty thousand kilometers, depending on engine manufacturers' recommendations (1)*. Nissan Diesel recommends 25,000 km, though our customers want to extend this to reduce maintenance costs. Accordingly, the authors investigated extending the oil change interval.