will bypass filtration alter UOA usefulness?

[columnshift]

If i'm running some kind of bypass filtration system, which I assume will be taking out all the little particles of whatever, wont that throw off the results I get from oil analysis in the first place?

I mean my understanding is they look at things like metal particles in the oil to determine wear conditions of an engine, but wouldn't a bypass filter "hide" that?

 

[901Memphis]

I don't think so, the particles the oil analysis can detect cannot be filtered out by bypass, but could result in lower overall wear numbers possibly. (if the bypass did catch a damaging particle)

Bypass filtration is mainly for extending online change interval.

 

[Ihatetochangeoil]

I have been running bypass filtration for a few years now and doing regular UOA reports to determine OCI.

There are SAE papers done by GM and Cummins Diesel which demonstrate the benefits of bypass filtration. I do not understand why everyone is NOT doing this.

http://papers.sae.org/881825/

http://papers.sae.org/710813/

No, bypass filtraton will not give deceptive results on oil analysis.

 

[Ihatetochangeoil]

Originally Posted By: Ihatetochangeoil
I have been running bypass filtration for a few years now and doing regular UOA reports to determine OCI.

There are SAE papers done by GM and Cummins Diesel which demonstrate the benefits of bypass filtration. I do not understand why everyone is NOT doing this.

http://papers.sae.org/881825/

http://papers.sae.org/710813/

In diesel engine studies (SAE 864507), the wear rate for particles less than 10 microns was found to be directly proportional to their weight. What this means is that for practical purposes you cannot filter particles too small. There are more particles the smaller the size, and all sizes are bad.By filtering down to 1 micron efficently you remove around 3/4 particles by weight, hence you decrease wear by 400%.This is the rule of thumb theory .A particle oil count before and after installing a bypass filter should show the reduction in particles, and the reduction by particle weight not particle numbers would be directly related to increased component life. How anybody arrives at a critical particle size is a matter of determining your current engine lifespan with your current particle count, and then projecting how lowering your particle counts will improve your wear rates.

No, bypass filtraton will not give deceptive results on oil analysis.

 

[CT8]

Why I don't run a bypass filter on my passenger vehicles is because the engine will outlast the rest of the vehicle with some luck. If I had a semitruck etc I would run a bypass filter to extend the service life of the oil.

 

[Doug Hillary]

Hi,
ihatetochangeoil - Welcome to BITOG. Your comments are correct!

I've used centrifuge by-pass devices over many years and millions of kms
I also supplanted the "normal" FF media with 40micron SS inserts in my last series of engine

My OCIs were determined via UOAs and by 150ppm Fe or 4% soot condemnation factors amongst others, but reaching either of these points was typically enough. OCIs over all engines averaged at around 90k kms

My first experience with such devices was over 50 years ago

 

[Ihatetochangeoil]

Hey, thanks for the welcome. I'm not real familiar with the metric system so I had to google a little, but 90K kilometers is 55923.407 miles, or roughly 56,000 AVERAGE you say.

Absolutely astounding. It seems astonishing to me that so many guys seem to think nothing of shelling out $50,000 for a new shiny truck, then when it is time to change oil, they want whatever is on sale at Wal-Mart, and I'm psycho for being willing to spend a few bucks more for better oil and better filtration.

 

[Ihatetochangeoil]

BTW, last time I had tech questions and I called the oil analysis lab, they told me that Fe and Si are the two worst things on your oil analysis report.

Fe is your engine literally disintegrating, and Si is in the air we breathe. "Over 90% of the Earth's crust is composed of silicate minerals, making silicon the second most abundant element in the Earth's crust (about 28% by mass) after oxygen." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicon

I run a nanofiber air filter, and when I first installed it, my Si went from 634 ppm to 41 ppm. (still high, but my bypass is cleaning it up). Condemning limits of Si are 20 ppm, but mine are dropping, and I'm barely in ISO 4406 code of 17, almost down to a 16.

I have also been told that any engine's wear rate may be found by taking the Fe ppm and dividing it by the mileage on the oil in thousands.

Cheers Friend.