Technical Paper
A New Sensors Array for the Measurement of the Content of Fuel Dissolved in the Engine Oil
2007-04-16
2007-01-0399
The maintenance on condition is gaining more and more importance in the field of vehicle pool management. A crucial role in the vehicle maintenance is covered by the changing of the lubricating oil of the gearbox, the differential and the engine. In the lubricating oil different substances dissolve: metal traces from the mechanical parts as well as soot and fuel traces from the leakages unavoidably present in the moving parts of the engine. As well known, the oil loses its lubricating characteristics according to the content of the above contaminants. The aim of the present work is therefore to test a new sensors array whose function is to reveal the diesel fuel content in the lubricating oil. The array consists of different gas microsensors based on different metal oxide thin films deposited by sol-gel technique on silicon substrates.