The patented method was developed by the LEC team, together with Kristl, Seibt & Co GmbH and the Research Association for Combustion Engines and Thermodynamics. In this process, the engine oil is enriched with the stable isotope deuterium, which can then be detected in the water vapor of the exhaust gas during engine operation, thus providing information about oil consumption.
The components
The core components of the LEC OilTracer are a catalyst for the oxidation of hydrocarbons to CO2 and H2O, and an isotope analyzer. The requirements of the isotope analyzer are met with the help of an exhaust gas conditioning system developed by Kristl, Seibt and Co. The isotope analyzer is used for online measurement of the deuterium concentration in the exhaust gas water vapor.
The Tracer
The engine oil is marked with the tracer by hydrogen-deuterium exchange in the hydrocarbons of the oil. Within five days, an exchange of approximately 70 percent of the hydrogen atoms is achieved in an optimized two-stage process in the pressure reactor. Depending on the measurement accuracy required by the customer, up to 15 percent of the engine lubricating oil can be replaced by deuterated oil without significantly affecting the properties.
Application examples
This device for high-precision online measurement of lubricating oil consumption is ideally suited for original equipment manufacturers in the automotive and large engine sectors as well as suppliers of test bed systems. Offering lube oil consumption measurement via the deuterium method is also a service for existing LEC customers (including deuteration of custom engine oil).
