As the quality of motor oil has improved over the last 15 years, so has the quality of petroleum based (mineral oil) heat transfer fluids.
The old way to refine oils — solvent dewaxing — has given way to hydrotreating, which, while more expensive, produces oils that have almost no residual sulfur compounds or asphalt molecules. With no impurities present to start the fluid degradation process, the new oils have much longer service lives and can operate at higher temperatures.
How can you tell the difference? Color.
Impurities give oil a yellow color – the darker and less transparent, the more impurities are present. Yellow may be cheaper to buy but it’s not cheaper to own. So the next time you’re shopping for mineral-oil based fluid, ask for a sample from each potential supplier. Pour each one into a glass jar and compare. If it’s the color of beer, it’s old technology.
Jim Oetinger
Director of Technology
Paratherm Corporation
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To read my new white paper, Hydraulic Fluids and Lubricating Oils in Heat Transfer Systems: The Pitfalls, click here.
Next tip will discuss will discuss another aspect in the use and/or performance of heat transfer fluids in closed-loop systems. If you'd like to suggest a subject, we welcome your feedback. This concludes the current series on Fluid Properties. In the near future, a comprehensive HEAT TRANSFER FLUID PROPERTIES technical data sheet in PDF format will be downloadable, combining the Tipsheet information, and more, to help you decide what's important in choosing a fluid for your application, and what's not.... Can't wait? Call us at 800-222-3611, or email info@paratherm.com
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