SYMPOSIA PAPER Published: 01 December 2022
STP163420210021

Thermal Stability Studies of Lubricant Additives

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Performance additives are found in all quality lubricants or the fluid would be sold as a basestock. These additives have many functions, some of which include corrosion protection, antioxidant, antiwear, acid neutralizations, dispersancy, detergency, and antifoam protection. The type of additives formulated in the fluid is a function or appetite of the lubricant's application. Nearly all lubricants are formulated to minimize the bad properties and improve the good properties—thus promoting smooth, reliable operation of the equipment. An important part of that operation is controlling and dissipating heat from the equipment. Temperature is an important, sometimes uncontrolled property of the equipment's operation that can lead to a number of fluid reactions both beneficial and damaging to the lubricant's formulation and the lubrication system. Unfortunately, the thermal stability of many of the lubricant additives being used today is overlooked or not well understood. There are several analytical methods available within the ASTM literature designed to reveal the thermochemical behavior of materials. However, there is little data available using the methods for these additives. Two main thermoanalytical techniques that can be used to investigate the thermal stability of lubricant additives are thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The procedures that describe these property measurements within ASTM are standards such as E1131, E1641, and E2550, which use the TGA technique for assessing the thermal stability and compositional analysis of most any hydrocarbon materials. The DSC standards such as E487, E537, E1858, E2009, and E2046 can be used to study in‐service lubricant lifetimes by evaluating lubricant stability and oxidation properties. In this study, an array of lubricant additives was tested against these ASTM standards to understand the additive's thermal stability and chemical behavior toward extreme temperature excursions. The results of this testing program are reported.

Author Information

Schomburg, K., Cory
PerkinElmer, Inc., Waltham, MA, US
Wooton, David
Wooton‐Consulting, Bumpass, VA, US
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Pages: 295–332
DOI: 10.1520/STP163420210021
ISBN-EB: 978-0-8031-7715-4
ISBN-13: 978-0-8031-7714-7