Evening star., 1933-03-19
SCIENCE STUDIES
MOTOR CAR OILS
Aim to Get More Out of Lubri-
cants in Way of Power
and Speed.
Special Dispatch to The Star.


DETROIT, Mich, March 18.-First
the engine, then the fuel, and now the
oil used for motor cars, has come under
scientific scrutiny, with the aim of get
ting more cut of it in the way of high
power and speed performance.
The engineers who design the power
plants have been collaborating with the
chemists who do the research work on
both the fuels and the lubricants with
this objective in view.
The way has been pointed by DR.
Gustav Eglof Of Chicago, who has re-
port ready for forthcoming session
of the American Chemical Society. In
it he asserts that the new extreme
pressure lubricants and synthetic lu-
bricating oils have been perfected to
meet future demands for speed twice
greater than the present maximum.
Increase of Speed.
In the last 10 years the average speed
of passenger cars has been built up
from 35 to 60 miles an hour, and the
maximum for airplanes has climbed
well above miles per minute; that OF
one high-speed car (Sir Malcolm Camp
bells Bluebird IT'D has been boosted
above Az miles in 60 seconds and that
of power boat to better than 2 miles a
minute.
The scientific advances that have
made express speeds Of gasoline driven
vehicles climb to almost unbelievable
heights in the last five years have been
achieved in variety of ways. Engi-
neering skill has fashioned cylinders
that extract additional power from a
given fuel by operating them at inter-
nal temperatures ranging as high as
A 10 oH
of 400 pounds per square inch.
This has necessitated specialized
treatment of fuel and Oil by the chem
lists not only to build up power content,
but to make them function under high
pressure conditions over long distances
on the road.
The operation Of an automobile en-
gine has been likened to that of the
digestive process that takes place in
the stomach Of a human being and
transmutes food into bodily energy The
engines food is gasoline and lubrica-
tion plays its part in making the power
plant assimilate it to provide energy
for motive power. Lubricants give free
rolling motion of the wheels. which Is
one Of the first and most essential fac
tors in efficient operation.
AS to engine fabrication, new facts
are being brought to light that give
automobile owners more intelligent
Of these were brought out at recent
sessions of the American Society for
Testing Materials. held in New York.
According to w. H. Graves. chief
chemist of the Packard Motor Car Co..
engine speed and engine design have
far more influence on changes in oil
consumption than do the properties of
the oil. A properly fabricated and
clean engine may give decreased con-
sumption up to $4,000 or 10000 miles.
At this point oil consumption increases.
Piston rings Of the same design, but
different manufacture, may show 100
per cent difference in oil used. The
more the ring diameter the lower the
consumption.
The most important factor. Mr..
Graves finds, is engine speed, and an
increase of 80 to SIS miles per hour
may increase the consumption in one
car by 13O per cent and in another
more than 18 times as much.
Too Heavy Summer Oh
E. w. Upham of the Chrysler Cor
poration staff has pointed out that
many car owners, especially in Sum-
mer, use lubricants heavier than those
recommended.
The inclination of the driving pub
nc," he said, "iS to use heavier oils to
control oil consumption except when
forced to use lighter oils to get started.
Continued improvement in engine de-
sign and in the lubricants will tend to
correct this condition"
Crankcase oils deteriorate largely be-
cause dirt and abrasives are allowed to
enter engines and enter the oil stream
past the pistons, according to A. Ludlow
Clayden, research engineer of the Sun
Oil Co. Air cleaners and oil filters re-
duce this trouble, but the average au-
tomobile owner does not renew filter
at proper intervals. He added that oil
dilution in engines no longer is a prob
lem. Tests by the General Motors re-
search laboratories have shown that
engines can run indefinitely with highly
diluted lubricant, but with an increase
in noise. Automatically controlled en-
gine jacket temperatures, crankcase
ventilation and automatic oil tempera-
ture control have solved the dilution
difficulty.
Carbon Cut Down.
Carbon deposits in engines have been
cut down by the general reduction in
oil consumption, w. A. Cruise of the
asserts. Engines of today run hotter
and are more evenly cooled, so that
there are fewer hot spots and cold areas
to produce uneven carbon deposits.
Changes in cylinder head design and
the rise in anti-knock value of gasoline
make it possible at present compression
preSsureS to tolerate a certain amount
Of carbon without knocking.
Copyright. 1888 by North American News
paper Alliance. IncD