Oil Viscosity Review

Oil Viscosity Review

Oil Viscosity: Technically, the viscosity of an oil is a measure of the oils resistance to shear. Viscosity is more commonly known as resistance to flow. If a lubricating oil is considered as a series of fluid layers superimposed on each other, the viscosity of the oil is a measure of the resistance to flow between the individual layers. A high viscosity implies a high resistance to flow while a low viscosity indicates a low resistance to flow. Viscosity varies inversely with temperature. Viscosity is also affected by pressure; higher pressure causes the viscosity to increase, and subsequently the load-carrying capacity of the oil also increases. This property enables use of thin oils to lubricate heavy machinery. The loadcarrying capacity also increases as operating speed of the lubricated machinery is increased. Two methods for measuring viscosity are commonly employed: shear and time.

Shear: When viscosity is determined by directly measuring shear stress and shear rate, it is expressed in centipoise (cP) and is referred to as the absolute or dynamic viscosity. In the oil industry, it is more common to use kinematic viscosity, which is the absolute viscosity divided by the density of the oil being tested. Kinematic viscosity is expressed in centistokes (cSt). Viscosity in centistokes is conventionally given at two standard temperatures: 40C and 100C (104F and 212F ).

Time: Another method used to determine oil viscosity measures the time required for an oil sample to flow through a standard orifice at a standard temperature. Viscosity is then expressed in SUS (Saybolt Universal Seconds). SUS viscosities are also conventionally given at two standard temperatures: 37C and 98C (100F and 210F). As previously noted, the units of viscosity can be expressed as centipoise (cP), centistokes (cST), or Saybolt Universal Seconds (SUS), depending on the actual test method used to measure the viscosity.