Ive heard that a lubricants life is cut in half for every 10 degrees C (18 degrees F) increase in operating temperature. Is there any truth to this?
Yes, this is generally true. The concept is based on the Arrhenius Rate Rule, named for 19th-century Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius. Heat increases both the collision rate of molecules and the activation energy of the reaction. The higher activation energy helps overcome the barrier (or natural resistance) molecules have to chemical reactions. With petroleum oils, the chemical reaction that typically causes base oil degradation and additive depletion is oxidation. The activation energy required to induce oxidation in oil is high compared to other chemical reactions. The presence of contaminants such as water and certain metal particles in the oil can considerably speed up the process, i.e., increasing the activation rate. For most in-service mineral oils with typical contaminants, the activation energy for oxidation corresponds to a doubling for every 10 C ( 18 F ) temperature increment. Why does a refrigerator keep food from spoiling? Spoiling is a chemical reaction like oil oxidati
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