Page 22 - SMI Issue 62

Chemicals & LubricantsBusiness Manager.So how do lubricants andchemicals optimise ship performance and reduce owners’ and operators’ costs?“Using the correct lubricant maintains the engine as close to its design state as possible – thereforeas close to its optimum efficiency as possible. The further away you move from this design state, the less efficient the engine becomes, costing owners and operators more in both fuel bills, maintenance and repairs. Furthermore, much engine damage caused by using the wrong lubricant is cumulative and could be irreparable. Using the correct lubricant from day one can significantly impact on an engine’s efficiency and therefore running costs,” said BP Castrol’s Geoff Kimber.“For example, two stroke cylinder oil doesn’t just serve to lubricate moving parts, it also controls the degree ofcorrosion on the liner surface.An appropriate cylinder oil must therefore combine the necessary level of detergency and dispersancy to keep the piston rings and crown clean, and the necessary alkalinity, or base number (BN), to neutralise the acids formed during combustion.“Although pistons and liners arenot considered to be overly sensitive to short-term operation with a high BN and low sulphur fuel, the longer-term impacts in the exhaust system should not be ignored. Without the correct lubricant, ash could build up in the high temperature areas; turbochargers,in particular. Deposit build up is cumulative, with no mechanism for deposit removal. Once this damage has occurred, it cannot be reversed, leading to component damage and increased operational costs.”Ordering the correct lubricant today is a very different prospect from the one-size-fits-all approach of a few years ago.“The times where we just delivered lubricants and the customer just bought lubricants and that was that has moved to a time when we (the suppliers) need to address the issue together with the customer. We have never had a time where we have had as many detailed and deep conversations with OEMs as we have in the last three years. And it is the same with our customers. We have never had such deep engagement about what is going on with their engines and how lubricants play their part as in the last three years,” added Mr Schaerer. u20 | The Ship Supplier | Issue 70 2016