A lubricant is a substance in the form of a solid or liquid, that helps the machine work easily and smoothly. It is used to reduce friction between two contact surfaces. Oil and grease are two popular and widely used liquid lubricants. There are many advantages and disadvantages of liquid lubricants. You can check them one by one here in this article.
Advantages of liquid lubricants
- Long endurance lives if lubricants are properly used.
- Low mechanical noise in most lubrication systems.
- Very low friction in the elastohydrodynamic lubrication system.
- No wear between the two surfaces, as lubrication makes the surface slippery and slick.
- No wear in the elastohydrodynamic system.
- Promotion of thermal conductance between two surfaces.
- The protective layer formed by lubricants helps to safeguard the component's surface against rust and corrosion.
Disadvantages of liquid lubricants
- Long-term storage of lubricants is difficult.
- Endurance life is dependent on lubrication loss.
- Additives are necessarily used for a boundary lubrication system.
- Friction is dependent on speed in the liquid lubrication system.
- The temperature of this type of lubrication is dependent on viscosity, vapor pressure, and creep.
- We need to use seals or barrier coatings to prevent creep.
- Finite vapor pressure and oil loss.