Tag Archives: Elemental Spectroscopy

Introduction to Elemental Spectroscopy Elemental spectroscopy measures in-service fluid samples for wear metals, additives, and contaminants. The method used to perform the measurement is properly termed Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES) and the results are commonly referred to as ICP or spec results. The measurement is performed by diluting a sample with solvent…

Sources of Iron Iron is commonly expected to be found in samples as a wear metal, as it is the foundation element in all forms of steel, which is by far the most prevalent material in lubricated machines. It will often correlate with other metals like chromium, titanium, molybdenum, and vanadium; if the correlation remains…

Sources of Lead Lead is an expected wear metal in any machine using plain bearings, as lead and tin are the most predominant metals used in Babbitt overlay, with lesser amounts of copper, antimony, and/or arsenic. Typically, increasing levels of lead from this layer are not considered actionable, not until metals like copper or nickel…

Sources of Aluminum While lead is commonly thought to be wear metal, that is not always the case. One example would be an oil sample from an aluminum block engine compared to a steel block engine. The block itself may be a source of wear metals when the sleeves for the pistons are machined directly…

Sources of Tin Tin is another wear metal expected in any machine using plain bearings, as lead and tin are the most predominant metals used in Babbitt overlay, with lesser amounts of copper, antimony, and/or arsenic. Typically, increasing levels of tin from this layer are not considered actionable, not until metals like copper or nickel…

Sources of Nickel Nickel is a wear metal found in some machines using plain bearings, as lead and tin are the most predominant metals used in Babbitt overlay, with lesser amounts of copper, antimony, and/or arsenic. Typically, increasing levels of nickel are from an intermediate layer and therefore considered actionable. Nickel can also increase as…