4 Qualities of a Reliable Lubricant
Viscosity
It’s essential to choose the right type of lubricant for your vehicle. Oils with low viscosity will not form the best fluid film on metal-to-metal contact, increasing wear and heat and shortening the life of a component.
There are two basic types of viscosity. Kinematic viscosity refers to the resistance of a fluid to flow. It’s often quoted in data sheets. Absolute thickness refers to the fluid’s internal resistance to flow. It’s used in friction and the strength of an oil film to support a load.
Viscosity is important because the more viscous the oil is, the more difficult it is to pump it through an engine. High-viscosity oils can also cause cavitation, affecting the engine’s lubrication. If you need to figure out the viscosity of a lubricant, you can do a cold pumpability test. This test measures how resistant the oil is to pump through an engine after … Read More