ENGINE LUBRICATING

SYSTEMS

INTRODUCTION :
Friction generally refers to forces acting
between surfaces in relative motion .In
engines frictional losses are mainly due to
sliding as well as rotating parts .
Frictional loss is mainly attributed to the
following mechanical losses :
1. Direct frictional losses
2. Pumping losses
3. Power loss to drive the components to
charge and scavenge
4. Power loss to drive other auxiliary
components.

LUBRICATION :
Lubrication is art of admitting a
lubricant (oil, grease etc..) between
two surfaces that are in contact and
relative motion.
Lubrication is essential to reduce
friction and wear between the
engine components .

Functions of Lubrication :

To reduce friction and wear between the

moving parts and thereby the energy loss
and to increase the life of the engine.
To provide sealing action e.g. the
lubricating oil helps the piston rings to
maintain an effective seal against the high
pressure gases in the cylinder from leaking
out in the crankcase.
To cool the surfaces by carrying away the
heat generated in the components .
To clean the surfaces by washing away
carbon and metal particles caused by
wear.

Mechanism of lubrication :

Fluid film lubrication is the lubrication regime in which through

viscous forces the load is fully supported by the lubricant within
the space or gap between the parts in motion relative to one
another (the lubricated conjunction) and solidsolid contact is
avoided.
Hydrostatic lubrication is when an external pressure is
applied to the lubricant in the bearing, to maintain the fluid
lubricant film where it would otherwise be squeezed out.
Elastohydrodynamic lubrication: The opposing surfaces are
separated, but there occurs some interaction between the
raised solid features called asperities, and there is an elastic
deformation on the contacting surface enlarging the loadbearing area whereby the viscous resistance of the lubricant
becomes capable of supporting the load.
Hydrodynamic lubrication is where the motion of the
contacting surfaces, and the exact design of the bearing is used
to pump lubricant around the bearing to maintain the lubricating
film. This design of bearing may wear when started, stopped or
reversed, as the lubricant film breaks down.

Lubrication of Engine
components :
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Piston and cylinders

Crankshaft and their bearings
Crankpin and their bearings
Wristpin and their bearings
Valve gear

Lubricating systems
1.Mist lubrication system
2.Wet sump lubrication system
3.Dry sump lubrication system

MIST LUBRICATION SYSTEM :

Oil mist lubrication oils are applied to rolling element

(antifriction) bearings as an oil mist. Neither oil rings or constant
level lubricators are used in pumps and drivers connected to
plant-wide oil mist systems. Oil mist is an atomized amount of
oil carried or suspended in a volume of pressurized dry air. The
oil mist, actually a ratio of one volume of oil suspended or
carried in 200,000 volumes of clean, dry air, moves in a piping
system (header). The point of origin is usually a mixing valve
(the oil mist generator), connected to this header. Branch lines
often feed oil mist to hundreds of rolling elements in the many
pumps and drivers connected to a plant-wide system.
At standstill, or while on standby, pump and driver bearings are
preserved by the surrounding oil mist, which exists in the
bearing housing space at a pressure just barely higher than
ambient. These pump and driver bearings are lubricated from
the time when atomized oil globules join (or wet out) to become
larger oil droplets. This joining-into-large-droplets starts
whenever the equipment shafts rotate, which is when small
globules come into contact with each other and start coating the
bearing elements.

WET SUMP LUBRICATION SYSTEM

A wet sump is a lubricating oil management design for

piston engines which uses the crankcase as a built-in
reservoir for oil, as opposed to an external or secondary
reservoir used in a dry sump design.Piston engines are
lubricated by oil which is pumped into various bearings,
and thereafter allowed to drain to the base of the engine
under gravity. In most production automobiles and
motorcycles, which use a wet sump system, the oil is
collected in a 3 to 10 litres capacity pan at the base of the
engine, known as the sump or oil pan, where it is pumped
back up to the bearings by the oil pump, internal to the
engine.A wet sump offers the advantage of a simple
design, using a single pump and no external reservoir.
Since the sump is internal, there is no need for hoses or
tubes connecting the engine to an external sump which
may leak. An internal oil pump is generally more difficult
to replace, but that is dependent on the engine design.

1.The splash system

2.The splash and pressure system
3. The pressure feed system

Dry sump lubrication system

A dry sump is a lubricating motor oil management method for four-stroke

and large two-stroke piston internal combustion engines that uses external
pumps and a secondary external reservoir for oil, as compared to a
conventional wet sump system.
Four-stroke engines are both lubricated and cooled by oil which is circulated
throughout the engine feeding the various bearings and other moving parts
of the engine; and thereafter allowed to drain to the sump at the base of the
engine under gravity. In most production automobiles, which use a wet
sump system, this oil is simply collected in a 3 to 10 litres capacity pan at
the base of the engine, known as the oil sump (or oil pan in American
English), where it is circulated back through the engine by an oil pump
drawing, or "scavenging" from the sump's reservoir. This pump is mounted
internally to the engine and is typically driven by the camshaft. In a dry
sump, the oil still falls to the base of the engine, but rather than being
allowed to collect in a reservoir style oil sump it falls into a much shallower
sump where it is removed by one or more externally mounted scavenge
pumps and is pumped into an external reservoir where it is both cooled and
deaerated..

These pumps are typically belt-driven from the front or back of the crankshaft. Oil
is then drawn from this reservoir by the pressure pump and circulated through the
engine. Typical dry sump systems have the pressure pump and scavenge pumps
mounted on a common shaft so that one pulley at the front of the system can run
as many pumps as required by the design of the engine. It is common practice to
have one scavenge pump per crankcase section and in the case of a V-type
engine an additional scavenge pump to remove oil being fed to the valve gear.
Therefore, a V-8 engine would have five scavenge pumps and a pressure pump in
the pump "stack".

Properties of lubricants :

The duties of the lubricant in an engine are

many and varied in scope. The lubricant is
called upon to limit and control the
following:
Friction between the components and
metal to metal contact
Over heating of the components
Wear of the components
Corrosion
Deposits

To accomplish the above functions, a good lubricant should posses

properties :
Suitable viscosity
oiliness to ensure the adherence of the bearings ,and for loss friction
and wear when the lubrication is in the boundary region, and as a
protective covering against corosion.
High strength to prevent the metal to metal contact and seizure under
heavy load.
Should not react with the lubricating surface.
A low pour point to allow the flow of lubricant at low temperature to the
oil pump.
No tendency to form deposits by reacting with air, water, fuel or the
products of combustion
Cleaning ability
Non foaming characteristic
Non toxic
Low cost
Inflammable