Measuring Kinematic Viscosity of Engine Oils: A Comparison of Data Obtained from Four Different Devices

The aim of this paper is to compare the results of kinematic viscosity of lubricating oils measurements at 40 °C, obtained with three different rapid evaluation devices, and the standardized method using an Ubbelohde Capillary viscometer. The following instruments were selected to measure: a mid-FTIR spectrophotometer, a microchannel viscometer, and a Stabinger viscometer. The study material comprised 42 fresh engine oils, all of which are commercially available. The main data analysis tools used in the study were multiple regression, Mahala Nobis distance, post-hoc analysis, and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test with the Bonferroni correction. Consistent outcomes were obtained for the Stabinger viscometer only, whereas the microchannel viscometer and the mid-FTIR spectrophotometer were not as precise as the reference method. It was also found that the results obtained with the use of the mid-FTIR spectrophotometer were burdened with a very large measurement error. Therefore, a very careful approach is suggested when choosing these instruments. The study fills an important gap in empirical research in the context of the reliability of measurement results obtained using various research techniques.