U.S. Army Awards Contract to Supply Lubricant Condition Monitoring Instruments

Spectro Inc. (USA) has been awarded a $1.5 million contract by the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command to supply multiple analytical instruments for machine and oil condition monitoring based on oil analysis. The instruments will be an integral part of the Army Oil Analysis Program (AOAP) and will be used in land-based and mobile laboratories.

The contract is for multiple instruments and includes Spectro’s newly introduced Spectro-Visc semi-automatic viscometer, A-RFS sample preparation stations for the elemental analysis of large particles, LaserNet Fines Particle (LNF) Counters and Particle Shape Classifiers, Automatic Sample Processors for the LNF, Fuel Dilution Meters, and the Spectroil M/N-W Oil Analysis Spectrometer. All of Spectro’s instruments are optimised for ease of use and for operation in laboratory or non-laboratory environments such as the Army’s mobile laboratories.

The Spectro-Visc is a bench-top semi-automatic kinematic temperature bath viscometer optimised for the analysis of used and new lubricants. It is an ideal system for used oil analysis laboratories that need to test a wide range of lubricant viscosities. A-RFS is a new and innovative sample processing technique developed by Spectro that enables Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (AES) to concentrate small and large wear and contaminant particles in fluids. The LaserNet Fines (LNF) is a bench-top automated oil debris analysis instrument. It is a particle counter and shape classifier that identifies, sizes and trends wear debris in all types of lubricants and hydraulic fluids. The Fuel Dilution Meter is an instrument that provides rapid and accurate measurements of fuel contamination in engine oil. The Spectroil M/N-W Oil Analysis Spectrometer analyses oil and hydraulic samples to detect and quantify metals and contaminants that indicate an abnormal condition. These instruments will join about 100 other Spectro instruments already in use by the U.S. Army at laboratories in the United States, Southwest Asia, Europe, and Korea.

The AOAP is part of a Department of Defense (DoD) wide effort to detect impending equipment failures and determine lubricant condition through periodic analytical evaluation of in-service oil samples. Equipment oil analysis testing is a quality management tool that enhances safety, conserves lubricants, and extends the life of major mechanical assets and components.