Lubricants & Greases
Lubricants and greases are essential for reducing friction, wear, heat, and corrosion across modern industry. They are widely used in automotive and transportation, industrial gearboxes, hydraulics, turbines, bearings, metalworking, manufacturing equipment, and marine systems. Because lubrication performance depends on a precise balance of base oil chemistry, additive packages, and consistency, even small changes can affect viscosity, oxidation stability, contamination sensitivity, and service life.
We provide analytical testing and materials characterization for base oils, additive components, finished lubricants, and greases, supporting R&D development, incoming QC, batch release, condition investigations, supplier qualification, and failure/root-cause analysis. Our multi-technique approach delivers clear, decision-ready results for both routine control and complex troubleshooting.
Why Testing Matters for Lubricants & Greases
Lubricants and greases must maintain performance under heat, load, and contamination exposure. Testing typically focuses on controlling:
Viscosity and flow behavior (temperature sensitivity, shear effects)
Additive balance and compositional consistency (batch release and supplier equivalency)
Oxidation/degradation and volatility (service life, sludge/varnish tendency)
Wear metals and contaminants (equipment health indicators and contamination sources)
Ionic/elemental impurities (corrosion risk and additive interactions)
Deposit and residue formation (filters, varnish, sludge, grease separation)
Our lab combines physical property testing with chemical identification tools to support both routine QC and high-impact investigations.
FAQs
Can you test both new and used oils?
Yes. For used oils, context (service time, system type, top-ups) improves interpretation. Scope may be project-dependent.
Do you provide pass/fail reporting to a spec?
Yes—if you provide your acceptance limits and method preferences, we can align the report accordingly.
Can you identify the cause of sludge, varnish, or deposits?
Often yes. We combine residue chemistry (FTIR/Raman/Py-GC/MS) with elemental screening and particle analysis to identify likely sources.
What’s the best way to compare supplier equivalency?
A structured panel typically includes viscosity + fingerprint overlays (FTIR/GC) and targeted checks for key contaminants or additive signatures.
How important is a reference sample?
Very. A known-good lot (or new oil) makes difference analysis faster and more defensible.
Can you analyze wear particles?
Yes. SEM-EDS is commonly used to classify wear debris and differentiate wear vs contamination vs degradation-related solids.