Condition Based Maintenance Policy for Crankcase Lubricating Oil in Diesel Locomotives

Abstract

Crankcase lubricating oil minimizes friction and wear. It reflects the condition of the components of the system through its physical properties, chemical properties, and contaminants. In the rail industry, its role is significant for locomotives as oil failure may lead to catastrophic system failure. In this paper, the authors consider oil replenishment quantity, replenishment periodicity, and oil degradation as the basis for oil reliability evaluation. The lubricating oil reliability is evaluated using a polygraph approach for chemical properties and contaminants, i.e., viscosity, insoluble, Total Base Number (TBN), and pH. Lubricating oil life cycle data is collected for five different locomotives. The performance parameters are then estimated, considering oil as repairable and non-repairable systems. A condition-based maintenance policy is derived based on the reliability assessment for the five locomotives.