Lubrication in Four-Stroke Marine

Diesel Engines
E. Hlede L.Davia

Attrito, Usura e Lubrificazione in Campo Navale

Napoli, 13 Maggio 2010
XI Convegno di Tribologia

Wrtsil

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Table of contents

Introduction to Wrtsil
Introduction to 4-stroke Diesel engines
Diesel Engine Lubrication
Future Prospectives

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We provide the broadest portfolio and best services in the industry for both ship power and
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of their equipment make in the most environmentally sound way.

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Wrtsil Italia Engines

from

To

1,860

7,200

kW

W38B

4,350 11,600

kW

W46

5,850 20,790

kW

W46F

7,500 20,000

kW

W50DF

5,500 17,100

kW

W64 12,060 17,200

kW

W26

W26

W46F

Wrtsil

W38

W46

50DF

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

W64

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Wrtsil R&D footprint

Trondheim, Norway
Frequency converters

Stord, Norway
Electrical &
Automation systems

Vaasa, Finland
W20; W32/32DF/34SG,
Ecotech

Turku, Finland

Rubbestadneset,
Norway

Ecotech

Espoo, Finland

CPP, Gears

Fuel cells, Ecotech

Drunen, The Netherlands

CPP, FPP, Thrusters

Havant, UK;
Slough, UK

Winterthur, Switzerland

Face Seals,
Synthetic Bearings

2-stroke: RT-flex, RTA

Trieste, Italy

Toyama, Japan

W26, W38, W46,

W46F, W50DF, W64

Rubber Seals &

Bearings

Bermeo, Spain
W34SG, W50DF

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Introduction to 4-stroke Diesel engines

4-stroke engine (4-cycle engine)

This is an engine in which the pistons complete their power
stroke every second crankshaft revolution. The four
strokes are: intake, compression, power and exhaust.
(also called: inlet, compression, combustion and outlet).
The 4-stroke cycle is so called because it takes 4 strokes of
the piston to complete the processes needed to convert the
energy in the fuel into work. Because the engine is
reciprocating, this means that the piston must move up and
down the cylinder twice, and therefore the crankshaft must
revolve twice.

Wrtsil

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Introduction to 4-stroke Diesel engines

Diesel engine operating principle (4-stroke)

10

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Introduction to 4-stroke Diesel engines

Division of engines according to speed

Low speed engine (Slow speed engine)

An engine broadly defined as running at speeds below 300 rpm. Low speed engines are
also called "slow speed" engines. Low speed engines are typically two stroke engines.
Medium speed engine
An engine broadly defined as running at speeds of 3001200 rpm.
High speed engine
An engine broadly defined as running at speeds above 1200 rpm.
Remarks! These speed categories (low, medium, and high speed) are general "rules of
thumb" and not officially defined by any regulatory body

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Diesel Engine Lubrication

Function of lubricating oil

Lubricating oil is an integrated
engine component
Main function of lubricating oil
is to maintain power producing
efficiency and ability by

lubrication and sealing

cooling
cleanliness
corrosion protection

while staying in good condition

12

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Influence of lubricating oil properties

on engine components
Fuel injection pump:
Fuel / lubricating oil compatibility

Piston cooling gallery, ring groove area,

Piston skirt, cylinder liner:
High temperature detergency
Thermal stability
Alkalinity
Antiwear
Oxidation stability
Cams and rollers:
Antiwear
Extreme pressure

Separator

Cold engine components:

Low temperature detergency
Corrosion resistance
Cooler

Pump

Filter

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Bearings:
Corrosion resistance
Oxidation stability

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

Crankcase:
Water resistance
Foaming resistance
Dispersancy
Detergency

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Function of lubricating oil

Lubrication and sealing

Cooling
Cleanliness
Corrosion protection

14

Wrtsil

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Function of lubricating oil

Lubrication and sealing

Cooling
Cleanliness
Corrosion protection

15

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Types of lubrication
Load

Load

Movement
Bearing

Oil out

Oil out
Oil in

16

Hydrodynamic lubrication

Hydrostatic lubrication

Boundary lubrication

Metal to metal contact

Wrtsil

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Properties related to lubrication

Viscosity:
170

160

150

140

130

120
0

1000

2000

3000

4000

OIL SERVICE HOURS (h)

VISCOSITY AT 40 C

17

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VISCOSITY AT 100 C

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Measure of fluids
resistance to flow
Viscosity increase
indicates:
oil oxidation
presence of soot &
combustion
originated material
HFO leakage to
lube oil
Viscosity decrease
indicates LFO leakage
to lube oil
Wrtsils limit:
-20% / +25%
5000
change @ 100 C
-25% / +45%
change @ 40 C

Function of lubricating oil

Lubrication and sealing

Cooling
Cleanliness
Corrosion protection

18

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Cooling of engine components

Bearings
Pistons

Example of average oil temperature in piston

120

TEMPERATURE (C)

110
OIL TEMP ERATURE OUT OF PISTON
100

90

80
OIL TEMP ERATURE INTO PISTON
70
0

25

50

75

100

125

ENGINE LOAD (% )

19

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Function of lubricating oil

Lubrication and sealing

Cooling
Cleanliness
Corrosion protection

20

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Engine cleanliness

The lubricant must remove sludge to

prevent deposit formation
Sludge originates from:
water
fuel
solid residues
Deposits and lacquer
combustion products from fuel
combustion products from lubricant
lubricant / fuel that has oxidised
lubricant / fuel that has cracked
lubricant / fuel that has polymerised
Fuel / lubricating oil compatibility is
important

21

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Piston cooling gallery cleanliness

Influence of piston cooling gallery deposit thickness
on piston top temperature
250

Limits:
W32, 38, 46, 64
- aver. 300 m
- max. 400 m
W20, W26
- aver. 200 m
- max. 300 m

200

150

100

50

0
0

200

400

600

800

DEPOSIT THICKNESS [ m]

22

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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1000

Properties related to cleanliness

Insolubles:

1.0

0.8

0.6

0.4

0.2

0.0
0

23

Wrtsil

1000

2000
3000
OIL SERVICE HOURS (h)

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

4000

Describes the amount

of solid contaminants
present in lube oil
Consists of soot, dust
and wear debris as well
as of oxidation products
derived from fuel /
lube oil
Several analysis
methods exists having
an influence on exact
analysed value
Wrtsils limit:
max. 2.0 % m/m
measured with
5000
ASTM D 893b
method

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Function of lubricating oil

Lubrication and sealing

Cooling
Cleanliness
Corrosion protection

24

Wrtsil

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Properties related to corrosion protection

Base Number (BN):

55

50

45

40

35

30

25

20
0

1000

2000

3000

OIL SERVICE HOURS (h)

25

Wrtsil

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

4000

Describes the available

alkali reserve in lube oil
BN is decreasing when
acid sulphur and
nitrogen originated
combustion residues
are reacting with alkali
reserve
SLOC and fuel S content
are the main factors
influencing on BN
depletion rate
Wrtsils limit:
min. 20 mg KOH/g
on HFO operation
max. 50%
5000
depletion on LFO
operation

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Wear, mm/10000 h

Example of wear rates

Corrosive wear increases at

higher fuel sulphur levels

Corrosive wear decreases

dramatically at higher BN

High sulphur fuel

Low sulphur fuel

10

15

20

25

30

BN, mg KOH/g

26

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Reasons for oil change, HFO operation

100

80

75

75

60

40

20

20

20
5

0
Viscosity

Insolubles
1

Other

Without anti-polishing ring

27

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

Base Number Viscosity

2
With anti-polishing ring

WRTSIL CORPORATION

Other

Base number depletion

Fuel sulphur
No antipolishing ring
Dry sump

Base number (mg KOH/g)

40

S = 1.75 % m/m
SLOC = 1.2 g/kWh
LV = 1.5 l/kW

30
S = 3.5 % m/m
SLOC = 1.2 g/kWh
LV = 1.5 l/kW

Condemning limit

20

S = 3.5 % m/m
SLOC = 0.4 g/kWh
LV = 1.5 l/kW

Change
interval

10
S = 3.5 % m/m
SLOC = 0.4 g/kWh
LV = 0.75 l/kW

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1000

2000

3000

4000
5000
6000
Running hours (h)

Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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7000

8000

9000

10000

Properties related to wear

Iron (Fe):

50

Indicates mainly wear

of cylinder liners and
pistons
Fresh oil can contain
iron up to 10 ppm
originating from tanks
and pipes
Typical analysis
accuracy 10%

40

30

20

10

0
0

1000

2000

3000

4000

OIL SERVICE HOURS (h)

29

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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5000

Summary of main lube oil characteristics

IMPACT ON
ENGINE OPERATION

CONDEMNING LIMIT
(HFO OPERATION)

Low base number

Corrosive wear
Liner, piston ring groove

min. 20 mg KOH/g

Insolubles

High insolubles
content

Dirty engine
Deposit formation
Wear of bearings etc.

max. 2.0 % m/m

in n-pentane

Viscosity

High viscosity

More friction
Reduced cooling

45% increase at 40 C
25% increase at 100 C

Low viscosity

Thinner oil film

Metal - metal contact

25% decrease at 40 C
20% decrease at 100 C

High water content

Deterioration of oil film

Bearing damage

PROPERTY

CHANGE IN
PROPERTY

Base number

Water content

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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max. 0.3 % V/V

FUTURE PROSPECTS IN ENGINE

LUBRICATION

31

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Engine energy losses

About 10-15% of
all energy
supplied to an
engine is lost
due to friction

Other
20%

Crank train
15%
Valve train
5%

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Lubrication in 4-Stroke Marine Diesel Engines / E Hlede - L Davia

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Piston assembly
60%

Solid lubricants

Low friction coefficient ( 0.4)

Lattice structure arranged in layers
Strong bonds between atoms within a layer and relatively weak
interatomic interactions (van der Waals forces) between atoms of
different layers allow the lamina to slide on one another

Low shear strenght

33

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Solid lubricants
9 Graphite

graphite is structurally composed of planes of polycyclic C atoms that are

hexagonal in orientation. The distance of carbon atoms between planes is longer
and therefore the bonding is weaker

water vapour is a necessary component for graphite lubrication. The adsorption of

water reduces the bonding energy between the hexagonal planes of the graphite to
a lower level than the adhesion energy between a substrate and the graphite
graphite is not effective in vacuum

Graphite structure
34

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Solid lubricants
9 MoS2

the most widely used form of solid film

lubrication today
like graphite, it has a hexagonal crystal
structure with the intrinsic property of easy
shear: weak atomic interaction (Van der
Waals) of the sulphide anions, while
covalent bonds within molybdenum are
strong
lubrication relies on slippage along the
sulphur atoms; all the properties of the
lamella structure are intrinsic effective
in vacuum or dry atmosphere
the temperature limitation of MoS2 at
400C is restricted by oxidation.

MoS2 structure
S
Mo
S
S
Mo
S

9 WS2

35

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Max working temperatures about 100C

higher than MoS2

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Solid lubricants

9 BN, white graphite

Hexagonal Boron Nitride (h-BN, -BN, or g-BN graphitic BN)

high temperature resistance, 1200C service temperature in an oxidizing atmosphere
lubricant at both low and high temperatures (up to 900 C, even in oxidizing atmosphere)
since the lubricity mechanism does not involve water molecules trapped between the layers, boron
nitride lubricants can be used even in vacuum
high thermal conductivity
the cubic structure is very hard and used as an abrasive and cutting tool component

9 BaF2/CaF2

High Temperatures (effective lubricating above 400C)

9 Ag

36

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Self-lubricating coatings

9 Thin coatings
Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) , Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD),
Thickness 10 m

9 Thick coatings
Air or Vacuum Plasma Spray (APS and VPS), High-velocity Oxy-fuel Spray
(HVOF), Plasma Transferred Arc (PTA), ...
Cermets coatings
0,1 mm thickness 15 mm

High-velocity oxyfuel process

37

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Self-lubricating coatings
Properties & Selection:
Thermal stability: very important since one of the most significant uses of these materials
is in high temperature applications not tolerated by other lubricants:
Oxidation stability
High temperature corrosion
Volatility
Adhesion on base material
Hardness
Thermal shock resistance

SEM backscattered micrograph of a

NiCr(80/20)/Cr2O3-Ag-BaF2CaF2 coating
Source: W. Wang. Surface and Coatings
Technology 177 178 (2004) 1217
38

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Benefits in engine components

Functional coated components
enabling:
Use of new clean fuels (ultra low
sulphur) and other new fuels (bio
fuels etc.)
Use of different fuels in multi-fuel
engines
Improve durability (especially for
components running at high
temperature)
Better performance (NOx and
CO2)
Reduce oil dependence
Green products

39

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Thank you for

your attention

Presentation name / Author