BFPA Technical Conference on ‘Managing Fluid and Lubricant Contamination’

26 September, 2018

The conference was attended by almost 100 OEMs and end users responsible for fluid and lubricant maintenance, filtration and condition monitoring in a wide range of applications, as well as lubricant and hydraulic fluid professionals.

These delegates were from a wide range of industry sectors, including; oil companies, fluid manufacturers, additive manufacturers, car manufacturers, hydraulic equipment manufacturers, turbine builders, energy utilities, filter manufacturers and suppliers of particle counting and sizing equipment. The conference was carefully compiled to offer the most insightful guidance on maintaining clean systems.

Sponsors of the event were: The BFPA, EnerMech, Hy-Pro, MP Filtri, Parker and the United Kingdom Lubricants Association (UKLA). In addition to their involvement in the conference itself, the sponsors and other key suppliers also exhibited and demonstrated products in the foyer area outside the conference room, and key personnel from these companies were on hand to discuss the delegates’ specific solutions requirements during the conference session breaks.

Key topics

80% of breakdown in hydraulic systems is due to contamination. Keeping systems clean will reduce long-term expenditure. With this in mind, delegates at the conference learned about managing contamination control and:

• Contaminant formation Varnish – an increasing problem in major applications.

• Developments in test methods for assessing fluid and lubricant cleanliness.

• Changes to the classification of cleanliness.

• Controlling cleanliness and contamination by air, water and particulates.

• Case studies of problems associated with cleanliness and contamination.

10 September programme

The Session Chair for the first day of the conference was Allan Barber, Global Industrial OEM Manager, Lubrizol International, Derby, UK. The conference programme on 10 September comprised the following speakers and topics:

10:00 – Conference Opening Remarks by Chris Buxton, CEO, the BFPA.

10:10 – Keynote Address by Matt Fielder, Stanhope Seta: ‘The Development and Use of 2 Micron Particle Counting Instruments in Fluid Power Systems.’

10:40 – Particle Counting: Why are You Counting Gels, Water and Bubbles? by Joanne Coyle, JM Canty.

11:10 – Refreshment Break & Exhibition in foyer.

11:30 – Fluid Contamination Monitoring – Technology for Industry 4.0 by Geoff Grant, MP Filtri.

12:00 – Integration of Ferrous Density and Particle Count for Automated Ferrography Analysis of Abnormal Wear Conditions by Daniel Walsh, Spectro Scientific.

12:30 – Buffet lunch in foyer & Exhibition.

13:30 – Best Practice Oil Sampling using the new ASTM D8112 Turbine Oil Sampling Guidelines by Bernie Hall, Checkfluid.

14:00 – The Formation and Impact of Varnish in Oil Lubrication Systems by Keith Webb, Pall Europe.

14:30 – Free radical formation in the wake of electrostatic discharges in hydraulic and lubricating systems by John Duchowski, Hydac Fluid Care Centre.