From remote physical locations, to 24/7 operation to bulk supply storage, engines used in power generation are susceptible to a particular number of maintenance and environmental issues unique to the application. What is not unique, however, is that engines used in power generation need to remain at optimum performance levels since they are often the only practical means of providing electricity in remote or off-grid areas.
This article will briefly explore the positive effect of bypass oil filtration technology on issues encountered on a regular basis, as well as the environmental benefits of this technology. During the past decade the quality of filtration and oil additives has improved significantly; but oil changes are still necessary since available full flow oil filters alone are unable to remove fine contaminant.
High-efficiency bypass oil filtration technology has become a significant weapon in the arsenal against escalating oil-related maintenance costs through its ability to effectively address major issues that cause oil to lose its inherent characteristics
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The success of high-efficiency bypass oil filtration technology is based on two concepts:
- Lubricating oil does not wear out and, if kept clean, will almost indefinitely maintain lubricating qualities intact.
- High-efficiency, micro-fine oil filtration is essential for safely extending oil drain intervals and simultaneously extending engine life.
The process itself is very simple. Used in conjunction with the equipment manufacturer’s full flow filter, bypass oil filtration technology keeps engine oil clean by filtering a small amount of oil out of the normal oil stream and returning it back into the flow after removing solid contaminant to below one micron, plus liquid, gaseous and acid contaminants.
Bypass oil filtration and power generation
Cost
Transport of new oil and maintenance personnel to and from a location can be costly and cumbersome. When storage of bulk oil supplies and transport of oil and maintenance personnel and equipment are factored in, it is apparent how and why oil-related maintenance costs continue to escalate. Bypass oil filtration can reduce the purchase of new oil by up to 90 percent, and in many cases reduce the need for maintenance personnel to frequent the location, reducing manpower cost.
Puradyn reports that since installing its bypass filtration system on 3512 diesel generators, one oil service company now changes oil, the replacement filter and the engine full-flow filter every 4 months of 24/7 operations (or 2,600+ hours) with no maintenance issues. In fact, due to the cleanliness of the engines and efficient water removal through use of micro-fine filtration technology, this company has been able to extend engine overhauls by 10,000+ hours.
Depending on the size and physical location, the amount of oil needed to operate and maintain equipment through normal maintenance can run into millions of dollars in new oil purchases and waste oil disposal costs.
Interruption of service
Taking an engine offline is eliminated when taking an oil sample and changing the replacement filter, which must be changed in lieu of changing the oil, and the process of doing both requires only minutes.
Reduced oil maintenance makes bypass filtration ideal for use on power generators in remote locations, with equipment having a high oil sump capacity and needing to be operable 24/7.
Ecological impact
Once a company has made a conscious decision to mitigate its ecological footprint, bypass technology becomes an important component in the program, since it represents the potential to reduce the handling and disposal of used oil by up to 90 percent. Reducing the number of oil drains reduces the likelihood of groundwater contamination from improperly disposed-of oil. In addition, reducing the volume of waste oil destined for disposal, it reduces the frequency of even handling the new and waste oil, therefore reducing the odds of any oil spillage.
What to look for in a bypass filtration system
When researching the different types of bypass oil filtration products, it is important to choose a system that can effectively address the key issues that require oil changes. A bypass oil filtration system must:
- Filter solid contaminants – Including wear metals, soot, dirt, sludge, etc. to below 1 micron.
- Remove liquid contaminants – Including water, etc.
- Remove gaseous contaminants – Including sulfur oxides (SOX), nitrogen oxides (NOX), fuel vapors, etc.
- Replace base additives in oil
