Oil analyses ISO 4406

Areas of use

Oil analyses as per ISO 4406, hydraulic systems in the automotive, industrial and aviation fields

The advantage

In the past, oil and liquid analyses were carried out using extrinction particle counters or optical particle counters (OPC), as microscopic counting in the 2 to 4 μm range was not yet technically possible.

Thanks to new analysis software and improved microscope and filter clamping elements, it is now possible to automatically focus on, record and measure particles as small as 2 μm.

Microscopic analysis technology has several major advantages over OPC analysis systems:

There is no longer a limiting particle size, i.e. particles larger than 300 μm can also be examined. In contrast to the OPC method, the actual particle size is determined and not just the area-equivalent circular diameter. A cross-laboratory comparison via reproducible calibration of the measurement technology is possible. The presence of an archivable filter membrane allows a subsequent detailed analysis of the particles to be carried out. Another important advantage is the independence of the test liquids and their properties, e.g. viscosity, refraction index and degasification state. Thanks to these advantages, a microscopic particle analysis method will be used as the measurement technology reference for oil analyses.

This state-of-the-art measurement technology is available to CleanControlling for precise and reproducible oil analyses (as per ISO 4406) of particles 2 μm in size or larger.