What is Oil Mist and How it Works

Oil mist is an aerosol. It is not a Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) or a vapor. It is a mixture of one part oil
to 200,000 equal parts of air. It is a lean mixture that will not support combustion and will not explode. The
appearance of oil mist resembles cigarette smoke or steam drifting from a pump or motor through a vent
line. Using oil mist lubrication, a typical application in the hydrocarbon processing industry will reduce oil
consumption up to 40 percent over the traditional oil sump method of lubrication.

Oil Mist System
Oil mist is generated by passing high velocity air over or through an orifice that pulls oil into the air stream.
The high velocity air shatters the oil into particle sizes of one to three microns, thus the resemblance to
cigarette smoke. Airflow transports these small oil particles through a piping system to the equipment to be
lubricated. Prior to being applied to a bearing, the small particles of oil are passed through an orifice,
reclassifier or mist fitting, causing the small particles to impinge on each other and grow in size. The heavier
particles are then large enough to wet the surfaces and provide adequate lubrication for most rolling element
bearings. It is excellent lubrication for bearings operating at 1,800 to 3,600 rpm and it is often the preferred
method of lubrication for bearings operating in the 10,000 to 15,000 rpm range where splash lubrication is
ineffective.
Because an oil mist system has no moving parts, there is little chance of failure. The only requirements for
generating oil mist are clean air and clean oil. The electric monitors control and help maintain a constant mist
density. Many systems without electrical devices are in operation, and may be serving critical equipment.
There are numerous systems in refineries serving 30 to 50 pumps in pure mist applications that do not have
the redundant or backup units.

Pure Oil Mist
Currently, there is only one OSHA regulation concerning oil mist: Oil mist cannot contain more than five mg
of oil per cubic meter of air that a person can be exposed to in an eight-hour period. At this time, there are
no other laws, regulations or mandates from the government controlling the use of oil mist lubrication.
Benefits of Oil Mist Lubrication
With the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI) consolidating to reduce cost, the trend to improve machinery
reliability is a top priority. The companies using oil mist lubrication see the mean-time-between-repair
(MTBR) increase from 24 to 36 months up to 48 to 60 months. With the average repair cost per pump
between $5,000 and $10,000, the reduced repair costs attributed to oil mist lubrication can have a dramatic
impact on a refinerys bottom line.
Oil mist lubrication provides a number of important benefits, including:
Reduced bearing failures
Decreased manpower for lubrication tasks
Elimination of oil changes
Reduced fire risk
Improved mechanical seal life
The reduction of the work force in many plants has stimulated the discussion of oil mist in maintenance
meetings. The oil mist system allows the reduced staff to spend less time on the tasks of lubrication and
more time on high priority tasks, while lubrication is provided in the right amount at the right time. Other
possible cost credits include the reduction in fire incidents, mechanical seal failures and exposure to
hazardous chemicals.
Maintenance people often ask how oil mist can reduce mechanical seal failures when oil mist is not directly
applied to the seals. It is common for an oil mist salesman to hear We dont have bearing failures.
Mechanical seal failures are more common. Consider this: With the bearing attached to the same shaft as
the mechanical seal, and because everything affects the mechanical seal, it is safe to assume that when
bearings last longer mechanical seals will last longer. The same is true when pump failures cause exposure
to chemicals; by reducing the number of pump failures, the chance of exposure is reduced.
One of the most favorable benefits of pure oil mist lubrication is that it reduces the operating temperature of
the bearing it lubricates, typically 20F to 35F (-6C to 2C). Heat is generated by friction created from rolling
the bearing through an oil sump at a high speed. When the oil sump is drained away, there is no oil to
generate heat and no sump in which to retain it, so the temperature drops. With every 10F (5.6C) reduction
in temperature, the bearing fatigue life is increased by 11 percent.
Oil mist lubrication, while often superior to the traditional oil sump lubrication, not only lubricates equipment
during operation but it also protects and preserves internal components (bearings and gears) when
equipment is idle. Idle or spare equipment is subject to surface corrosion on internal components due to the
ingress of atmospheric moisture, and the possibility of fretting wear caused by ground vibration. Idle
equipment will experience thermal cycling, or breathing contaminated air as temperature changes, many
times throughout a 24-hour period. This causes the surrounding atmosphere to enter the bearing or gear
cavity. The atmosphere may be laden with moisture, dust or even acid fumes, depending upon the
contaminant within the environment. The atmospheric contaminants accumulate on machine surfaces,
causing corrosion and reducing equipment life.
In contrast, oil mist builds a slight positive pressure, approximately 0.25 inches water, in the cavity. This
pressure prevents the intrusion of the airborne contaminants, and internal surfaces and components are
coated with a protective film of oil. The oil film on internal components guards against corrosion, and protects
against fretting wear by creating a thin film of separation.
Many facilities now use oil mist storage systems to protect and preserve equipment stored in warehouses.
Large-scale storage yards with oil mist are also used in grass-roots plants during the construction phase to
protect equipment over extended periods of time. Equipment such as pumps, motors, turbines, diesel
engines, large lube oil skids, vertical sump pumps and gearboxes may be stored on a single mist system. A
refinery built in Thailand a few years ago used oil mist storage and experienced only one failure during plant
startup. Conversely, refineries not using oil mist storage may experience numerous failures during
equipment testing and startup.
Most Common Equipment Applications and How to Apply Oil Mist
The most common application for oil mist is the typical overhung process pump. Pumps are the workhorses
in the HPI and are subjected to harsh chemicals, extreme temperatures, long intervals between oil changes,
high thrust loads and other conditions for which they were not designed. For years, maintenance/reliability
engineers have experimented with how to apply oil mist, and have been pushing the pump manufacturers to
adapt their equipment for oil mist. API 610 8th Edition Pump Standards now embrace oil mist lubrication.
Standards of applying oil mist are gaining ground and making the process even more successful.
Motors are an excellent opportunity for oil mist lubrication, but because the rotors, stators and bearings are
housed together, it is not an easy application. Oil in the windings is not the problem; its the housekeeping
situation that makes the application less desirable on motors. In recent years, motor manufacturers have
responded to the markets wishes by researching the use of oil mist lubrication on motors. As a result,
housekeeping has greatly improved. Oil mist is a vast improvement over the traditional grease lubrication
found on most motors. With oil mist, the bearing receives a fresh, clean, continuous supply of oil versus a
single greasing at the factory or repair shop and infrequent applications of lubricant thereafter.
Pillow block bearings are also candidates for oil mist lubrication because they are normally lubricated with
grease or a small oil sump. Grease and the oil baths both retain heat which increases operating temperature.
Or, the small lubricant supply may become contaminated from the environment. Both heat and contaminants
reduce bearing life. Two common problems with grease lubrication are overlubrication and underlubrication.
Applying the right amount of lubricant at the right time is difficult unless the grease is applied with an
automatic system. Set up to control the frequency and amount of grease applied, the automated system can
eliminate human error. Mist provides a constant supply of lubricant to properly lubricate the bearings.
Most pumps, motors and pillow block bearings with rolling element bearings have oil mist applied as pure
mist or dry sump lubrication. Ideally, oil mist is applied in the upper quadrant on one side of the bearing and
exits through a vent or drain from a low point on the opposite side. This means that the oil mist is the only
source of lubrication, because there is no oil sump or grease to provide lubrication. Lubricating bearings with
oily air may sound risky, but in many applications it has proven itself superior to the oil sump and grease
lubrication.
Another way to apply oil mist is purge mist or wet sump lubrication. This requires an oil sump to be
maintained in the bearing housing. The oil mist is applied as a purge above the oil level to prevent the
intrusion of airborne contaminates. This method is commonly used on sleeve or plain bearings and in
gearboxes. Small steam turbines with sleeve bearings are excellent applications due to the steam in the
vicinity of the bearing housings. Cooling tower gearboxes also benefit from purge mist or wet sump oil mist
due to the harsh (wet) environment around the gearbox.
Sleeve bearings and gears have too much surface area requiring lubrication to make them candidates for
pure mist. Although pure mist has been utilized on sleeve bearings and gears, applying oil mist in a purge
mist application is easier and cheaper. Many of the benefits of pure mist are not available from a purge mist
system.
Limitations and Disadvantages of Oil Mist Lubrication
The main limitations and/or disadvantages of oil mist lubrication are the lack of knowledge about the
operation and the application of oil mist. Because airflow delivers the oil mist (oil particles) to the point of
lubrication, the suspension of the oil particles is important. Gravity has an effect on the oil particles, causing
them to settle if they do not arrive at the point of lubrication within approximately five minutes. With the mist
traveling at a velocity of 20 ft./sec., it can easily reach from the point of origin to the point of lubrication.
Distance is the easy part when designing an oil mist system. Achieving the proper pipe slope and pipe
diameters is also critical to receiving benefits from the system. Pipe fitters and instrument personnel must
route pipe and tubing according to the oil mist systems requirements. Therefore, choose the installers of
your oil mist system carefully.
Users need to be aware of and avoid overzealous application of oil mist. It is a common belief that if a little
oil does a little good, then a lot of oil will do a lot of good. Oversizing of the reclassifier or mist fitting to
improve lubrication has little or no impact on improving bearing life. In fact, when oil is seen dripping from the
equipment, it is due to improper sizing of the reclassifiers and not calibrating the OMG to the designed oil
consumption. Oversized reclassifiers and overzealous application can cause a system that would normally
consume one gallon of oil per day to consume three or four gallons of oil per day.
Cost/Benefit Comparison to Other Single-Point Lubrication Devices
As a rule, automated lubrication systems have established their value to industry. Although there may be
areas of overlap, one type of system generally cannot be used in place of another. The exception to this rule
is the air/oil system commonly used in place of a grease system. The most common types of automated
systems are grease, circulating oil, oil mist, air/oil and the high-pressure compressor systems.
Grease is used in several applications, ranging from the manually operated grease gun to the injector
system, the single-line system and the dual-line system. The grease gun is the most common application
method. It is typically preferred when only a few points require lubrication or when management does not
want to spend the money for an automatic system. A grease gun delivers grease in three ways:the right
amount, too much and too little. Too much and too little are not good for the equipment. Getting the right
amount of grease requires someone well-trained in knowing how much grease is required on each piece of
equipment and how to apply it. A grease gun is the least expensive method of applying grease, but how
does it affect machinery reliability?
Injector systems are common on air-cooled heat exchangers and sump pumps found in most refineries.
Single-line and dual-line systems can serve these same applications; the main differences are features and
pricing.
Circulation oil systems have also established their place, not overlapping where other systems can be used.
The air/oil system, common to the steel industry, does not have much application in the HPI.
When comparing lubricating systems, an oil mist system is by far the easiest system to maintain; repairs are
relatively simple. Maintenance normally consists of changing filters and doing walk-down inspections to look
for broken or leaking lines. Repairs often involve a simple replacement of components in the oil mist unit or
replacing a broken line. The least expensive way to lubricate process pumps is with an oil sump to get
started, but considering the total life cycle cost, the oil sump leaves a lot to be desired.
These systems vary in price from a few hundred dollars to $100,000 or more, depending on the number of
lube points being served. The bottom line is: When reliability is of utmost importance and when your
business relies on rotating equipment and bearings that require lubrication, an automated system may be
required.