Petroleum Technologies Group, LLC provides complete oil testing for many different markets and applications with a special focus on the transportation, off-highway, industrial, waste handling/landfill, marine and power generation industries. Located in Grand Rapids, MI we have intentionally remained a smaller sized lab in order to maintain exceptional, unparalleled customer service. At Petroleum Technologies, you’re never just another number. We’re large enough to handle the volumes and yet we’re still small enough to care.

What began as an engine repair shop called Precision Diesel Services in 1978, one of the owners, Mike Reimann, introduced an oil analysis program as a complement to his repair service in the late 70’s, realizing the importance and necessity of a solid, holistic preventative maintenance program. By the early 80’s, the engine repair shop was sold and a complete focus was maintained on developing and leading the oil analysis industry. As a pioneer in the industry, we were one of the first to introduce the FTIR as a standard test to our oil analysis program. In the mid 90s, we launched one of the first online, live databases for our customers to retrieve their data. We still continue to strive for the “what’s next?” and push forward while maintaining our original convictions that were formed so many years ago.

After 30 years, Mike Reimann continues to lead the company. His vast knowledge, not only of oil analysis practices but also his strong mechanical background, filters through the company and continues to be the cornerstone of Petroleum Technologies.

For many years, lubricant inspection and testing has been used to help diagnose the internal condition of oil-wetted components and to provide valuable information about the lubricant serviceability. The first test methods used for this purpose included such simple procedures as smelling used oil for the sour odor of excess acid, checking visually for obvious signs of contamination or placing a small drop of sample on absorbent paper to detect contaminates and monitor additive effectiveness.

Modern day analysis is built on these early efforts. The importance of using a combination of physical and spectrochemical tests to monitor lubricant and component conditions is not universally accepted. Oil analysis test procedures are established and reviewed by such agencies as the International Standard Organization, the American Society of Testing Materials and the Society of Automotive Engineers. Today, little doubt remains that a comprehensive oil analysis program is a very valuable tool.

TREND OIL ANALYSIS

All oil analysis programs are designed to be performed as a trend analysis. This is a regularly scheduled set of samples over a span of time. A trend is a unique history of what is happening to a unit within its specific application. To establish a trend, at least three samples are needed.

All the test data on a sample is relevant to:

• Hours or miles on the oil
• With time, the oil is accumulating more and more detectable metals
• What would be normal readings for an engine with 10,000 miles on an oil drain
  would be high readings on an engine with 1,000 miles on an oil drain.
• Time on the engine itself
• Each system has a life span and there will be differences in results along
  the way

One oil sample, taken after a failure, does not show the history of how the failure developed or how long it existed. Only a trend can do this. With failure analysis it is very difficult to reconstruct what caused the problem. The test data for an oil sample will sometimes fail to support the problem or failure when the service is used as a one-sample failure analysis.

With waiting until there is an indication of a problem to use oil analysis, the true value and purpose has been lost. Establishing a trend will give an early alert so that corrective action can be taken to prevent a major failure.