Evaluation of Ball on Three Disks as Lubricity Evaluator for CI/LI in Synthetic JP-5

Synthetic fuel, like other poor lubricity fuels, will require lubricity-improving additives in order to prevent excessive engine fuel pump and injector wear. Lubricity improver additive, at minimum and maximum treat concentrations, were blended with a synthetic JP-5 hydrocarbon fuel containing no sulfur or aromatic species. The blends were then tested using the Ball on Three Disks (BOTD) bench-top test to determine their respective wear scars. Wear was determined to decrease in a non-linear fashion as the lubricity additive concentration increased. The BOTD has been shown to have correlative utilization over other diesel fuel lubricity bench-top tests including the Scuffing Load Ball on Cylinder Lubricity Evaluator (SLBOCLE) and High Frequency Reciprocating Rig (HFRR). The BOTD compares favorably with the lubricity additive qualification bench-top test (Ball on Cylinder Lubricity Evaluator [BOCLE]) because of its lubricity additive sensitivity; however, published data indicates that it can more adequately represent conditions found in fuel pumps.