Fleet Maintenance - 31

What influences
oil drain
intervals?
Seven factors to consider.
By Chris Alley, Ismail Bagci,
Cummins Filtration
*	Lubricant consumption: While
excessive lubricant consumption may
indicate other problems, all other
things being equal, the greater the lube
consumption and replenishment, the
better the chances for an extended
drain. Any time you add more lube,
it's being renewed or "sweetened,"
including beneficial additives.

cold-weather performance. CK-4 engine oils
are designed for newer late model engines but
are also backward compatible.
If a fleet has a mix of older and newer trucks,
they may need distinct extended-drain interval
programs for each classification of lubricant.
Putting an FA-4 oil in a non-FA-4 compliant
engine won't cause long-term harm, but it
should not be a common practice, and fleets
should expect that it will affect the results of
their oil analysis program.
As always, check with the engine manufacturer about which formulations are approved
for extended drain intervals. If the manufacturer allows CK-4 for extended drains on its
latest model-year engines, fleets can use one oil
in their extended drain program and greatly
simplify the process.

2.

»»Engine filtration is a natural fit for
condition-based monitoring. This sensor
is part of FleetguardFIT, which monitors
restrictions in oil, fuel, and air filters. A control
module collects the data, and a telematics
device transmits it from the vehicle to the
cloud for instant analysis and viewing.
Photo courtesy of Cummins Filtration

*	Fuel economy: Fuel economy is a direct
indicator of how much acid, unburnt
fuel, fuel dilution, soot, and other contaminants are developed and placed
into the oil. An engine that consumes
more fuel is doing more work, which can
cause the oil to degrade faster. Most
engine manufacturers have information that uses fuel economy to indicate
what sort of duty cycle the engine is
operating and therefore what potential
there is for an extended drain interval.
*	Duty cycle: Duty cycle is a set of
factors that indicates how hard the
engine is working. For vehicles making
long-distance trips where optimum
road and engine speeds can be
maintained for long periods, there is
generally less stress on the oil, and
longer drain intervals can be achieved.

Filter media

Oil is commonly referred
to as the "lifeblood" of
the engine. In this vital
system, the engine oil
filter acts as a kidney: It
protects the engine by capturing and removing
harmful contaminants from the oil through
the service interval.
For extended drains, high filter efficiency is important for effectively removing the
contaminants that are known to wear down
engine components. The filter needs to have
the capacity to hold this contaminant throughout the desired service interval and beyond.
Finally, low flow restriction not only improves
fuel economy by taking the strain off the oil
pump, but it also means faster lubrication of
critical components on engine start-up.
The latest polymeric media has uniform
porosity and fiber integrity that will not degrade
over the life of the filter. Polymeric fibers are
bonded together for durability and, compared
to other synthetic media materials, are far less
prone to degrading and passing fibers down Continued Page 32

*	Lubricant quality: Some lubricants are simply more effective
than others for particular applications, whether due to better base
stock or to superior additives.

*	Heat: Excessive temperature is an enemy
of all engine oils, promoting oxidation
and other forms of lubricant degradation.
*	Contamination: Contaminants will
ultimately render a product ineffective
as a lubricant. Type and degree of
filtration can influence and prevent
this condition, depending on the
nature and cause of the contamination
and the composition of the filter.
*	Equipment usage: How a particular
piece of equipment is used plays an
important role in lubricant drain intervals
and affects all of the above parameters.

»»Typically, an OE filter is designed for the
applications and drain intervals the engine will
likely encounter. A fleet may need to use a filter
with upgraded seals and more robust media to
deal with the extended time in hot oil. This look
inside a filter shows a combination of media that
includes the latest polymeric media, which has
the uniform porosity and fiber integrity to stand
up to the demands of an extended drain interval.
Photo courtesy of Cummins Filtration

March 2020 | VehicleServicePros.com

31
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Fleet Maintenance

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