Fluitec International, LLC

10/30/2026

4,545 km Overnight to Save a Critical Compressor | DECON™ A on an MHI Ethylene Refrigeration Compressor, China

A large ethylene complex in Northwest China had a critical MHI ethylene refrigeration compressor whose thrust bearing was running hot. This is how one emergency delivery kept it at full load, with no trip, shutdown or derate, during a high-margin period.

THE ASSET
A company-level critical unit, in service since 2002. It supplies ethylene refrigerant to the cracker at −101 °C (−150 °F), −75 °C (−103 °F) and −65 °C (−85 °F).

Machinery: MHI ethylene refrigeration compressor, driven by a steam turbine
Thrust bearing: six-pad Kingsbury tilting-pad, Cu/Cr alloy. Alarm at 120 °C (248 °F), trip at 125 °C (257 °F)
Fluid: Mobil DTE 846 (ISO VG 46), in a 10,000 L (2,640 gal) shared reservoir

THE PROBLEM
Thrust bearing T16809 rose 13 °C (23 °F) in two months. By June 30, 2025 it read 106 °C (223 °F), while the pad next to it read 79 °C (174 °F). The plant’s root cause analysis found varnish on the bearing surface was the direct cause.

THE FIRST TREATMENT
DECON™ A was first added on July 7. Within three days, every thrust bearing temperature was trending down.

THE SETBACK
Then a seal failed. The DECON A was lost along with the oil. 8,600 L (2,270 gal) of new oil went in, leaving at most about 1% DECON A in the system. By September 19, T16809 was reading 112 °C (234 °F), and the plant would not accept a shutdown or a cut in load.

THE SOLUTION
Lubricant cannot be air-freighted inside China, so Fluitec’s China distributor sent five drums overnight in a dedicated vehicle. Two drivers covered 4,545 km (2,825 mi) from East China to Northwest China in about 46 hours, without stopping.
At 01:00 on September 19, three drums went into the running compressor, an estimated treat rate of around 7%. DECON A dissolves varnish and holds it in solution, so cleaner pads share the load and run cooler.

THE RESULTS
✔ T16809 dropped from 112 °C to 108 °C (234 °F to 226 °F) straight after dosing
✔ It held at about 107 °C (225 °F) through November 5
✔ The compressor stayed at full load, with no trip, shutdown or derate
✔ The plant is budgeting for a further five drums of DECON A

VALUE DELIVERED*

More than 1,300% ROI from avoiding a single hour of shutdown
At least RMB 10 million (about USD 1.4 million) in lost production for each hour of unplanned shutdown
About USD 235 to 470 million of production at risk over a one to two week outage
Under USD 100,000 estimated cost of the September treatment, including the dedicated transport
Under 5 minutes of avoided downtime pays for the treatment
*Estimates only, based on the plant’s figures. USD at approximately RMB 7.1.

Find out more here:
https://zurl.co/v55FS

10/28/2026

Most turbine oil is changed while the base oil is still healthy. It's condemned because the antioxidants ran out.

The whitepaper's starting point is that oxidation is the primary failure mode of turbine and compressor oils, and they are often condemned when antioxidant health falls to 25% of new.

Replenishing antioxidants in service, supported by ICML 55 (Chapter 11), only works after qualification: used oil analysis, blending with the antioxidant concentrate, aging and compatibility testing (ASTM D7155), then post-aging analysis.

Each reservoir is qualified on its own, because no two in-service oils are the same. The goal is Fill4Life™ oil that can last the life of the equipment.

In the Turbine Oil Performance Prediction (TOPP) accelerated aging test, new oil ended at 31% amines and an RPVOT of 550 minutes. In-service oil treated with BOOST™ AO ended at 112% amines and 845 minutes. In the field, two large frame gas turbines treated in October 2012 went from RPVOT 491 to 808 minutes and 475 to 858 minutes, and were still at 872 and 851 in October 2020.

That plant also runs an advanced varnish mitigation system, and its oils carry 145,000 operating hours against a goal of 200,000 on the initial charge. Pairing ESP varnish mitigation with BOOST AO or DECON™ AO can extend antioxidant life by about 50%.

There is a sustainability case too: each 3.8 L (1 gal) of oil that does not need to be refined, formulated, packaged and shipped avoids roughly 54 kg (120 lb) of greenhouse gas emissions.

Read the whitepaper: "The Journey to Fill4Life™"
https://zurl.co/u6fcC

10/26/2026

Every line on this oil analysis report said "acceptable". The oil had no antioxidants left.

A plastic injection molding plant was fighting rising scrap and falling productivity. The AW46 hydraulic oil on Machine 15 passed everything: viscosity 45.9 cSt at 40 °C (104 °F) against 46.0 new, water 55 ppm, zinc, phosphorus and calcium essentially unchanged, TAN 0.10 against 0.11. Then the maintenance manager found varnish on valve components. A RULER® voltammetry test showed every antioxidant in the in-service oil was depleted, and an MPC test came back at a ΔE of 61, in the critical range.

Why the routine tests missed it: elemental spectroscopy keeps reading zinc and phosphorus even after ZDDP has degraded into ineffective sulfates and phosphates; acid number only rises once the antioxidants are gone; and viscosity moves after other problems are entrenched. The whitepaper's recommended set is RULER (ASTM D6971), FTIR (ASTM D7414 for oxidation, D7412 for antiwear additives), MPC (ASTM D7843) and ultracentrifuge.

It also covers the other ways hydraulic oil fails: micro-dieseling, where imploding air bubbles reach 1,000 °C (1,832 °F), and electrostatic spark discharge, with sparks up to 10,000 °C (18,032 °F), which in some cases can be eliminated by moving to a different type of filter.

Read the whitepaper: "Why Hydraulic Fluids Fail" by Jo Ameye and Greg Livingstone
https://zurl.co/gZfsT

10/23/2026

A thrust bearing pad at 112 °C (234 °F) with a trip setpoint at 125 °C (257 °F) on a compressor the ethylene cracker can't run without.

That was the situation at a petrochemical complex in Northwest China in 2025.

After a June 2024 overhaul, one pad on the main thrust bearing of a Mitsubishi Heavy Industries ethylene refrigeration compressor held steady for six months.

Then it started climbing: 2 °C (4 °F) over three months, then 13 °C (23 °F) in two. By June 30, 2025, it read 106 °C (223 °F), while the pad next to it read 79 °C (174 °F).

Routine oil analysis was within limits. The plant's root cause analysis ruled out operators, alignment, rotor bow, parts quality, installation, and oil pressure and temperature. That left one cause: varnish on the bearing surface.

The stakes were high. The plant estimates one hour of unplanned shutdown costs at least RMB 10 million, and an outage of this unit would last one to two weeks. So the team set a 110 °C (230 °F) action limit and had a DECON™ dosing plan ready.

When the limit was reached:

Fluitec's China distributor drove five drums of DECON™ A non-stop from East China to Northwest China. Lubricants can't go by domestic air freight.

Operators added three drums to the 10,000 L (2,640 gal) system with the compressor running.

Bearing temperature fell from 112 °C to 108 °C (234 °F to 226 °F) right after dosing. It has held near 107 °C (225 °F) since.

There was no trip, no shutdown and no derate, and the plant is budgeting for five more drums.

If the oil report looks clean but the bearing is telling you something else, listen to the bearing.

Read the full case study: https://zurl.co/UzEM3

Emergency DECON™ A delivery and treatment stabilized thrust bearing temperatures on a critical MHI compressor, preserving full production during a strong market condition.

10/21/2026

In badly degraded heat transfer systems, the oil can solidify. Getting it out has meant shovels, or removing pipe.

Conventional heat transfer oils thermally crack at about 360 °C (680 °F), and film temperature at the pipe wall runs 14 to 28 °C (25 to 50 °F) above bulk oil temperature, and more than 40 °C (72 °F) above it when flow drops, so the film is where the real thermal stress is. Cracking lowers viscosity and flash point; oxidation raises viscosity and acid number. Flash point is the safety screen: a Cleveland Open Cup (ASTM D92) drop of more than 50 °C (90 °F) calls for further testing, and the closed-cup flash point should stay at least 14 °C (25 °F) above the temperature of oil exposed to air. Simulated distillation by gas chromatography then shows how much thermal stress the fluid has seen.

The carbon builds up quietly, eroding thermal efficiency, temperature differential, flow rate and pump efficiency. Shutdown and flushing is the usual fix. The paper presents an online alternative, Mobil™ SOLVANCER®, a fully synthetic API Group V oil-soluble cleaner. In a US asphalt plant, adding 3.3% to the in-service fluid delivered, over more than 6 months, a 20% decrease in fuel consumption, zero hot oil breakdowns for the first time in the plant's history, thermal balance restored within weeks, and no full oil change, with flash point unchanged. Individual results may vary with operating and weather conditions.

Read the whitepaper: "Innovative Technology to Improve the Efficiency of Heat Transfer Systems" by Rob Meldrum (ExxonMobil) and Greg Livingstone (Fluitec)
https://zurl.co/9NCLb

10/19/2026

A turbine oil with a long estimated life can still leave a lot of varnish behind.

That is why the TOPP test exists. The paper traces how specifications got here: TOST (ASTM D943, 1947) measured time to acidity at 95 °C (203 °F); RPVOT (ASTM D2272, 1964) pressurizes oil with oxygen at 150 °C (302 °F); and Dry TOST (ASTM D7873) was developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in 2004 in response to deposits on bearings, running at 120 °C (248 °F) without water. Second-generation standards ask for an RPVOT of 750 minutes. Third-generation oils are also tested against varnish, but those tests are not yet in national or international requirements.

TOPP, developed by Fluitec starting in 2012 and now under ASTM ballot, ages four 350 mL samples at 120 °C (248 °F) with air bubbled through for up to 12 weeks, testing at weeks 3, 6, 9 and 12 with RPVOT, MPC and RULER®. Three things are read at the end: oxidative stability (the best oils may retain 75% or more, older formulations under 25%), the MPC trend (above 30 ΔE is critical, while top performers still finish in single digits), and the glassware, where visible deposits show what to expect in the field. Benchmarking 32 commercial oils weights deposition 3, varnish production 2 and estimated life 1, and long-life oils often produce a lot of deposits.

The paper also covers extending oil life with additive concentrates, checked for compatibility (ASTM D7155) and qualified by TOPP, as was done for DECON™ AO.

Read the whitepaper: "High Thermal Stress Turbine Oil Specifications for Modern Gas Turbines" by Ludger Quick, Greg Livingstone and Jo Ameye
https://zurl.co/SaGlF

10/16/2026

An oil change is only as good as the system you pour the new oil into.

A power producer on Batam Island, Indonesia, had a Q1 2026 oil change scheduled on a GE Frame 6B gas turbine. MPC (ASTM D7843) had been trending up, from ΔE 24 in May 2025 to ΔE 25.5 by December. That was still in the MONITOR range but heading toward ABNORMAL. Servo valves and hydraulic actuators were at risk.

Draining the oil doesn't remove varnish already sitting on system surfaces. Fresh oil going into a dirty system starts its life contaminated.

The goal was MPC below ΔE 15 before the oil change, with no harm to TAN, particle count or additive levels.

The approach: DECON™ dosed at 5% into the 7,000 L (1,850 gal) system during normal operation, with no shutdown and no flush.

The results:
Day 42: MPC ΔE 4.1, NORMAL
Day 202: MPC ΔE 3.4, still NORMAL, an 86% reduction from peak
TAN, particle count (ISO 4406) and additive metals all NORMAL

Compared with a typical pre-change flush, the plant avoided 10 to 15 days of preparation and 11 drums of flushing oil.

A varnish-related trip on this unit is estimated at USD 50,000 to 120,000 per event. The treatment cost significantly less than a single unplanned outage.

Read the full case study: https://zurl.co/NFj63

The system entered its Q1 2026 oil replacement with clean surfaces, protecting the service life of the new Q8 Volta EP 32 charge. Compared with a typical pre-change flush, the plant avoided 10 to 15 days of preparation and 11 drums of flushing oil.

10/14/2026

Oil analysis alone may not tell you a bearing is varnishing. Its temperature trace might.

In tilting pad journal and equalized (Kingsbury style) thrust bearings, varnish forms where the oil film is thinnest. That shrinks clearance, raises pressure on the film, and lowers load carrying capacity and critical speed. Shear-stress deposits, created by localized degradation at microscopic interfaces, can slip past traditional MPC analysis.

The evidence in the paper: in a centrifugal compressor case study (Shin et al., 2025), four years of varnish buildup drove rotor vibration up 300%, from 6 to 18 µm (0.24 to 0.71 mil). Replacing the oil and removing the varnish restored normal levels. In the field, bearing temperature showed a sawtooth pattern of rapid spikes and gradual cooling, with excursions of 7 to 17 °C (13 to 31 °F) above baseline.

In thermohydrodynamic modeling (Jang et al., 2024), varnish at just 20% of bearing clearance cut minimum film thickness, lowered critical speed by up to 17%, and pushed pressure to as high as 8.9 MPa (1,290 psi) and temperature past 112 °C (234 °F). For reference, typical alarms sit at 110 °C (230 °F), trip at 120 °C (248 °F), and babbitt begins to creep around 132 °C (270 °F).

The takeaway: pair temperature trending with viscosity, MPC and FTIR results and vibration monitoring. No single signal proves varnish, but together they can flag it early.

Read the whitepaper: "Correlation between L**e Oil Condition & Bearing Temperatures" by Greg Livingstone and Sanya Mathura
https://zurl.co/R78Ra

10/12/2026

The oil in your heat transfer system is hotter than your gauge says it is.

At the pipe wall, film temperature typically runs 14 to 28 °C (25 to 50 °F) above bulk oil temperature, and more than 40 °C (72 °F) above it if flow drops. Two pathways degrade the fluid there: oxidation forms acidic byproducts and sludge, and thermal cracking breaks molecules into volatile light ends and tar-like polymers.

They leave different fingerprints. With cracking, viscosity and flash point fall, acid number is unchanged and Conradson carbon residue rises. With oxidation, viscosity and acid number rise, flash point holds and insolubles increase.

The deposits (sludge, varnish, and coke, the hard, carbon-rich one) act as insulation. More energy is needed for the same heat exchange, pumps can no longer reach the required pressure, and fouled systems often need a shutdown for cleaning.

Online treatment is hard too: the chemical filtration used on other lubricants isn't suited to these temperatures, and detergent-based cleaners can cause rapid deposit accumulation and lower flash points.

The paper looks at DECON™, a fully synthetic API Group V oil-soluble cleaner from the SOLVANCER® range, designed to be added to in-service oil to dissolve deposits and limit new ones.

Read the whitepaper: "Improving production of heat transfer fluid systems with solvency enhancers" by Jo Ameye and Greg Livingstone
https://zurl.co/Id9fw

10/12/2026

From Jakarta to Singapore: growing Mobil™ SOLVANCER® across Asia 🌏

The Fluitec team continued their Asia tour with visits to ExxonMobil and Mobil distributor teams in Indonesia and Singapore.

They held a Business Review at the ExxonMobil Indonesia office in Jakarta and ran a training session for the team. They shared a Mobil™ SOLVANCER® case study from the Pulp & Paper industry. More than 20 people from Sales, Marketing and Technical joined, in person and online.

At Brenntag Jakarta, they met the Sales and Technical teams and ran a training session. They talked through varnish issues our current customers are facing and looked at new opportunities, especially in Power Generation.

They finished in Singapore with a Business Review alongside the SAP team, looking at strategy and ex*****on for Mobil™ SOLVANCER® across the Asia region.

Thank you to the ExxonMobil Indonesia and Singapore teams and to Brenntag Jakarta for your time, your questions and your hospitality. Each conversation made it clearer that varnish is a shared challenge across many industries, and we’re excited to keep working together to solve it.

Juan José Salaberri, Lars van Dijk, Paul Ingram, Eric Puah, Guangjie Zheng