The Use of Cyclic Voltammetric Antioxidant Analysis for Proactive Engine Oil Condition Monitoring Program

This paper presents a Remaining Useful Life Evaluation Routine for engine oils, developed from cyclic voltammetric method to detect the antioxidants present in automotive and diesel engine, used to increase their thermal-oxidative stability.

A large matrix of drain samples from different equipment types/manufacturers, both engine and field trials were analyzed using the voltammetric technique (RULER™). The depletion of antioxidant capacity, compared to the new oil, was determined and gave different results, varying from low to high depletion in service. It was found that a correlation exists between antioxidant depletion and engine type as well as time in service.