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What Causes Engine Oil Oxidation?

Written by Charleen

The Dynamics of Engine Oil Oxidation

John Baker | Aug

You guessed it, the key ingredient to engine oxidation is oxygen.

Oxygen comprises about 20 percent of our atmosphere. It’s the third most common element in the universe. Without it we’d all be doomed.

And yet too much of it can cause problems inside your engine.

What is oxidation?

Oxidation occurs when the addition of oxygen changes a chemical substance. Take an apple, for example. Everyone knows that oxygen will quickly cause a cut apple to turn brown. Or metal. Oxygen can cause rust to form on some metals in a matter of days. Have you ever noticed your brakes grinding after having left your car sit for a couple days in wet weather? That sound is your brake pads scouring rust from the rotors. Never worry about that one as driving soon burns that off..

brake rotors oxidized from sitting or oxygn.

More wear on or in your engine occurs during storage. The oxidation discussed below can be detrimental. And that is not limited to the motor oil but the coolant system as well.

Motor oil isn’t immune to oxidation. As oil reacts with oxygen, a permanent chemical change occurs that causes oil molecules to lose one or more electrons. This can result in several problems, including…

  • Formation of sludge and deposits that reduce engine efficiency and increase the risk of engine failure
  • Increased oil viscosity, which reduces fuel efficiency
  • Additive depletion, reducing the oil’s effectiveness
  • Accelerated degradation, causing you to change oil more often

Heat accelerates oxidation

Every 18ºF (10ºC) increase in temperature doubles the rate of oxidation. That doesn’t bode well for motorists driving modern turbocharged vehicles that create increased heat compared to older vehicles. Or that Harley waiting in lines of traffic at events when block temps exceed 400F.

Heat isn’t the only oxidation accelerant – certain metals, acids and water can also hasten oxidation. So can large volumes of entrained air, known as foaming.

Can we prevent motor oil oxidation?

Unfortunately, no. Nature is a relentless force, and all motor oil will eventually oxidize to some degree. But we can dramatically slow oxidation through use of synthetic base oils and quality oxidation-inhibitor additives.

AMSOIL synthetic lubricants are formulated using base oils with a saturated molecular structure, meaning oxygen is prevented from attaching. This provides inherent heat and oxidation stability compared to unsaturated conventional oils.

And, because AMSOIL synthetic lubricants don’t contain contaminants like conventional oils, their base composition doesn’t accelerate oxidation.

AMSOIL synthetic lubricants also contain high-quality oxidation inhibitors. These additives are sacrificial in nature, meaning they’re designed to deplete over time. Because AMSOIL synthetic lubricants have inherently better oxidation resistance, their oxidation inhibitors last longer since they don’t deplete as rapidly.

When components and additives are selected for blending, cost is never a deciding factor thus our formulations will always result in the best of class. As AMSOIL does not have stock holders there are no outsiders to effect our decisions to always use the very best.

So, what does that mean to me?

That all adds up to a motor oil that…

  • Lasts longer despite intense heat and stress
  • Helps keep your engine cleaner and more efficient
  • Saves money in the long run through reduced maintenance
  • And as a bonus you enjoy added performance

So, while oxygen lets you breathe, AMSOIL synthetic motor oil lets you breath easy since your engine is protected against oxidation.

Maintenance, ,

How To Fix Motorcycle Engine Pre-Detonation

Written by Charleen

 

How To Fix Motorcycle Engine Knock

Your bike can automatically detune its engine, but there’s an easy fix.

_by Eddie Hilgendorfen |May 10, 2023

Many modern motorcycles are designed to compensate for low-octane gasoline in an attempt to prevent motorcycle engine knocking. Unfortunately, the technology involved may also cause reduced performance, rough idle or lack of throttle response, making for a less than stellar ride experience. Fortunately, we can help you understand the root cause of this problem, and offer an inexpensive, quick and easy solution.

What is engine knocking?

Engine knock  or pre-detonation is caused by an improper detonation within the engine, which happens when fuel ignites outside of a timed ignition from the spark plug. In the race to improve fuel economy, modern high-performance engines have increased compression ratios, which also inherently increases the chance of pre-ignition detonation.

Octane measures gasoline performance against pre-ignition, detonation and the resulting engine knocking or pinging. The three most common octane ratings are:

  • Anti-Knock Index (AKI)
    The rating typically displayed on North American gas station pumps as the average of the fuel’s RON and MON octane ratings (R+M)/2.
  • Research Octane Number (RON)
    This rating is determined by testing fuel using a variable compression ratio under controlled conditions and is the most common industry rating worldwide. When comparing octane ratings, RON is typically higher than the AKI number, so an 87-octane AKI fuel at a typical gas station typically has a RON of 91-92. AMSOIL uses RON when conducting product validation and performance testing.
  • Motor Octane Number (MON)
    MON differs from RON testing by using a preheated fuel mixture, variable ignition timing and a higher engine speed to increase ignition stresses on the fuel. Though the tests are unrelated, MON results are typically 8 to 12 octane lower than RON.

Causes for loss of power and efficiency

Low-octane gasoline is more susceptible to uncontrolled and early ignition in the combustion chamber, so the higher the octane, the more compression the fuel can withstand before igniting. Pre-ignition robs the engine of power, can cause a noticeable knocking or pinging sound, and if left unchecked, can even cause catastrophic piston or cylinder damage.

This is why I decelerate (turning off the cruise control) when driving up or climbing steep hills and I also sometimes turn off the air conditioning. Also doing this you can see A decent increase in your fuel efficiency

High stress combined with lightweight design caused this dirt bike piston to fail. Dude was in first place so missed out on the cash prize.

Reduced performance.

Many modern motorcycle engines are equipped with a knock sensor. Pre-Detonation causes this sensor to adjust timing to compensating for low-octane gasoline. Unfortunately, adjusting the timing usually results in a noticeable decrease in performance, rough idling and lack of throttle response. When timing changes are done correctly, most riders shouldn’t even be aware that the performance has been reduced, but it’s easy to resolve this performance problem.

Boosting octane To Reduce Knock

The risk of engine knock can be reduced by:

  • retarding ignition timing
  • enriching the air-fuel ratio
  • reducing cylinder pressure or engine load
  • reducing the throttle or boost especially as you climb a hill
  • increasing the octane rating of the fuel
  • Engine work – lower compression

Therefore, the performance degradation caused by reduced engine timing can most easily be eliminated by increasing the fuel’s octane number. AMSOIL Motorcycle Octane Boost increases octane up to three numbers. On a bike that can be significant! This helps to eliminate motorcycle engine knocking and maximize power, performance and fuel efficiency. We get a LOT of feedback on this. Check out the product reviews.

 

 

 

 

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