Lab Services Update: Viscosity Testing
Change to Viscosity Testing
As of January 1st, 2024, Fluid Life will begin reporting kinematic viscosity at one (1) temperature only.
- SAE oils will have their viscosities reported at 100C, while ISO oils will have viscosities reported at 40C.
- Viscosity Index will no longer be reported as this is a calculated value.
- Previously tested viscosity results will still be made available online and on .pdf reports, but future samples will only report on the one temperature.
Benefits of 1-Temp Viscosity
- Less ‘Noise’ in the flagging of viscosity results. (i.e. only flagging SAE oils based on VISC100 results / only flagging ISO oils based on VISC40).
- Improved Sample Rank assessments (eliminating erroneous flags) to give a clearer picture of oil health
- Easier interpretation of viscosity results (because only reporting one (1) temperature can be more easily matched up with industry (ISO/SAE) or OEM or oil supplier standards)
Reasons for Change
- Reporting two-temp viscosity may not be relevant in all applications. We have found that most customers focus on a single temperature to form the basis of their assessment. Therefore, reporting two-temperature viscosity could be extraneous to the core service. In fact, ISO (International Standards Organization) strictly defines viscosity guidelines at 40C. Likewise, SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) strictly defines viscosity flags at 100C. Therefore, this change brings our deliverables in line with industry standards.
- For multi-grade oils (i.e. 15W40), ONLY the ‘40’ is defined by Kinematic Viscosity at 100C. The cold weather characteristics (‘15W’) are based on a measurement of low temperature cranking and low temperature pumping characteristics. Therefore, it is a bit of a misnomer to utilize kinematic viscosity at 40C to define the cold weather properties of an SAE oil (even though there is a relationship).
If you have any questions regarding this upcoming change, please contact your Account Manager.