With legislation and ecological pressures, it is becoming increasingly difficult to dispose of used oil. The burning of used crankcase oil in 3600/C280 engines is not recommended due to the detrimental effects on exhaust emissions. However, if ancillary methods of reducing exhaust emissions to acceptable limits are used, or if emissions are not a
problem, burning crankcase oil in 3600/C280 engines is possible with the following guidelines.
- It is necessary to collect, store, and dispose of used crankcase oil from engines correctly. It is not acceptable
to dump used crankcase oil into the oceans, rivers, and harbors from vessels or offshore drilling and production platform installations. It may be necessary for engine operators to consider burning crankcase oil in their Cat
engines. This can be done, providing the precautions below are carefully followed: - Only diesel engine crankcase oils can be mixed with the diesel engine fuel supply. The ratio of used oil to fuel must not exceed 5%. Premature filter plugging will occur at higher ratios. Under no circumstances should gasoline engine crankcase oil, transmission oils, special hydraulic oils not covered by Caterpillar recommendations, grease, cleaning solvents, etc., be mixed with the diesel fuel. Do not use crankcase oils containing water or antifreeze from engine coolant leaks or poor storage practices.
- Adequate mixing is essential. Lube oil and fuel oil, once mixed, will combine and not separate.
Mix used filtered crankcase oil with an equal amount of fuel, then add the 50-50 blend to the supply tank before new fuel is added (maintaining the 5% used oil-to-fuel ratio). This procedure should normally provide sufficient mixing. Failure to achieve adequate mixing will result in premature filter plugging by slugs of undiluted oil. - Filter or centrifuge used oil before putting it in the fuel tanks to prevent premature fuel filter plugging, accelerated wear, or plugging of fuel system parts. Soot, dirt, metal, and residue particles larger than 5 microns
(0.000197 in.) should be removed by this process. If filtering or centrifuging is not used before adding the oil to
the fuel, primary filters with 5 microns (0.000197 in.) capability must be located between the fuel supply and
engine. These will require frequent servicing. - Clean handling techniques of the used crankcase oils are essential to prevent introducing contaminants from
outside sources into the diesel fuel supply. Care must be taken in collecting, storing and transporting the used
crankcase oil to the diesel fuel tanks. Diesel fuel day tank sight glasses may become blackened in time due to the carbon content in the crankcase oil. Ash content of the lube oil added to the fuel may also cause accumulation of turbocharger and valve deposits more rapidly than normal.