Wind Turbine Lubricant Testing
Wind
energy continues to grow in importance around the world. To best serve the
lubricants industry, Savant Labs is providing wind turbine lubricant
testing to support wind generation locally, nationally, and
internationally. With the high forces, high rotational speeds, and
variable conditions a wind turbine experiences in operation, lubrication is
critical.
Antiwear Testing
The gearbox is
generally considered the most important and vulnerable lubricated
component. The gears are susceptible to surface wear such as
micro-pitting and scuffing. Lubricants with antiwear and extreme pressure
additives can protect against scuffing and other surface wear.
Furthermore, the use of the fluid with the proper viscosity provides an
adequate film thickness to prevent contact between the gear teeth.
In addition, excellent antiwear properties and proper viscosity across the
operating temperature range are typical requirements to maintain proper bearing
function, for both oils and greases used in wind turbine bearing applications.
Materials
Compatibility
In addition to
these specific wear problems, wind turbine fluids must exhibit good materials
compatibility. For instance, they must not damage seals, which can
cause fluid leakage. Compatibility with paints and coatings used in the wind
turbine is also important. As with all lubricants, wind turbine fluids need to
resist foaming, minimize corrosion, and exhibit good oxidation stability, which
extends the drain interval. Finally, the lubricant needs to have good
pumpability across the operating temperature range, which can include cold
ambient temperatures in higher latitudes.
Many of the same tests that are used to validate automotive oils or industrial gear oils can be used to evaluate whether a lubricant is well suited to a wind turbine application.
In-Service Fluid Monitoring & Testing Program
In addition to
determining whether fluids are generally appropriate for wind turbine
applications, the wind generation industry makes extensive use of in-service
fluid monitoring. Many installations use in-line sensors to monitor overall
cleanliness or conductivity, which can indicate some level of information about
wear and oil degradation. Even more important, the standard practice in the
industry is to sample the gearbox oil about every six months during scheduled
maintenance and send it to a testing lab, such as Savant Labs, for
analysis. The tests conducted can vary, but tend to include fluid
cleanliness, viscosity, acid number, water content, elemental analysis,
analysis of oxidation, and ferrography. Together, these tests can identify the
beginning of a wear problem and can even be used to identify root causes before
the gearbox sees catastrophic failure due to wear damage.
With Savant
Labs as the laboratory partner in a fluid testing program, a wind turbine
operator would have years of testing expertise, rapid test turnaround,
continuous communication, and a quality guarantee statement. Savant Labs provide wind turbine
lubricant testing as part of the qualification process or condition monitoring
programs. Savant Labs are an enthusiastic and capable participant in
supporting the growth of wind energy generation. Contact us.
Wind Turbine In-Service Fluid Testing
ASTM D97 Pour Point
ASTM D445 Kinematic Viscosity
ASTM D664 Acid Number
ASTM D892 Foaming,
Sequence I - III
ASTM D893 Insolubles, Pentane
ASTM D974 Acid Number
ASTM D2500 Cloud Point
ASTM D2622 Sulfur by XRF - Wavelength
Dispersive
ASTM D2983 Brookfield Viscosity
ASTM D4739 Base Number
ASTM D4951 Elemental Analysis by ICP, Wear Metals
ASTM D5133 Scanning Brookfield Viscosity
ASTM D5185 Elemental Analysis by ICP
ASTM D6304 Water by Karl Fischer
ASTM D7216 Elastomer
Compatibility
ASTM D7414 FTIR Analysis, In-Service Fluid,
Oxidation
ISO 4406 Particle Count
Wind Turbine Gearbox Qualification Testing
ASTM D92 Flash Point and Fire Point, Cleveland Open Cup
ASTM D97 Pour Point
ASTM D130 Copper Strip Corrosion
ASTM D287 API Gravity of Crude Petroleum / Petroleum Products
ASTM D445 Kinematic Viscosity
ASTM D664 Acid Number
ASTM D665 Rust Prevention
ASTM D974 Acid Number
ASTM D1401 Emulsion Characteristics, Water Separability
ASTM D2270 Viscosity Index
ASTM D2711 Demulsibility
ASTM D2782 Timken Extreme Pressure
ASTM D2783 Four Ball Extreme Pressure
ASTM D2893 Oxidation Characteristics Extreme Pressure
ASTM D2983 Brookfield Viscosity
ASTM D4172 Four Ball Wear