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BTRA’s modified lubricating oil and grease dispensing equipment

Savings of 8-10 per cent possible with redesigned units

The Indian textile industry consumes large quantities of lubricating oils and greases at various stages of processing. Generally, the dispensing equipment are not of standard quality and substantial quantity of lubricants are lost during dispensing. A good amount of oil and grease can be saved if the dispensing aequipment is modified and redesigned. A report.

In order to ascertain the scope for conservation of lubricants and to develop suitable equipments and devices for the purpose, the Bombay Textile Research Association (BTRA) undertook a Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA) sponsored project for the same.

Drawbacks of equipment in use

The dispensing equipments in use in the textile industry have inherent drawbacks of large size, heavy weight and immobility, thereby affecting the operation efficiency, as well as accuracy of measurements.

A comprehensive survey of 12 composite mills carried out by BTRA revealed that 5-15 per cent of the lubricants used by them is lost due to deficiencies in lubricating practices, handling methods, dosing and dispensing equipment, etc. It was also observed that about 10 per cent of the spindle oil used in ring frames is wasted due to overdosing. Further, an average loss of 8-10 per cent of all lubricants takes place due to design drawbacks in a variety of dispensing equipment. Moreover, equipment presently in use pollute the environment and require more manpower for operations.

The study concluded that it is feasible to save about 10 per cent of lubricants, if the dispensing equipments in use are modified on the following counts:

• Layout of machinery
• Condition of floor, available space for movement and storage
• Overall weight of the equipment and its compactness
• Ability to regulate quantity of oil dispensed to minimise wastages

Considering the above factors, BTRA redisgned the equipment with the following modifications:

• Volume control mechanism to eject a definite quantity of oil/grease with precision of measurements of +/- two per cent
• Portability and convenience in handling
• Compactness
• Suitable hand lever or foot pedal for ease in manual operations without electricity
• Large oil or grease reservoirs fitted on trolley to save time for refilling.

The TRA has developed one hand operated and three pedal operated equipments to cover all the oiling and greasing applications in textile mills.

Hand operated spindle oil topping up equipment

The equipment is used for dosing pre-determined quantity of fresh spindle oil into the ring frame bolsters. The quantity of oil to be dosed can be adjusted from 5 cc to 20 cc, which meets the requirements of various types of bolsters used in the spinning frames. The equipment is mounted on a 15”x10” trolley which can be taken to any place in the textile mill easily.

Advantages over conventional spindle oil filling cans

• Oil in the rage of 5 cc to 20 cc can be dosed within two seconds, thereby saving considerable time
• No spillage of oil on spindles tapes, and thus, longer life of tapes
• Spindle rail of ring frame remains clean and does not attract cotton fluffs
• Can be operated easily even by an unskilled operator

Pedal operated oil extraction pump

This pedal operated pump is used for extraction of used oil from ring frame bolsters, gear boxes, etc, before these are filled with fresh oil. The complete unit is mounted on a specially built trolley for convenience in handling even on irregular flooring along narrow passages between machines. Actuation of foot pedal results in smooth suction of oil from the bolsters, etc, and is ejected into the can placed outside the pump cylinder. The pump takes about two seconds for extracting 100 cc of oil through its suction nozzle and ejects the same through the outlet tube.

Pedal operated oil dispensing pump

This is effective for oiling various parts of the textile machinery with measured quantity of oil. The pump consists of a vertical cylinder of five litres capacity mounted on a 18”x9” trolley. Actuated with a foot pedal, the quantity of oil can be adjusted through the nozzle with a single stroke of the pedal from 5 cc to 20 cc and ejection of oil takes around two seconds.

Pedal operated greasing pump The grease pump consists of vertical cylinder of five kg capacity mounted on a 18”x9” trolley and operated with a foot pedal. The pump is used for greasing various parts of the textile machinery with measured quantity of grease in the range of 3-20 gm.

Advantages of pedal operated equipment

• Both hands remain free which can be utilised for holding and operating the dosing gun conveniently
• Compared to hand operated equipment, pedal operated equipment can be operated with ease for a longer period without much fatigue
• Capacity of pedal operated dosing equipment is higher as compared to hand operated equipment
• More effective for higher viscosity oils and greases as higher pressure can be exerted through foot pedal for operating the equipment

Performance trials

Initially, the modified dispensing equipment were tried at BTRA pilot plant to evaluate their performance. The trials established a saving of 8-10 per cent of spindle oil and other lubricants.

Thereafter the results were validated through performance trails carried out over a period of three months at Paithan Silk Mills, Mumbai, which also confirmed the savings, and advantages of the redesigned equipment. q

According to the mill, “The pedal-operated oil extraction pump was found to be very effective for extracting the used oil from the bolsters of twisting machines and gear boxes of various textile machinery. About 50 cc of oil can be sucked out within 2-3 seconds with one or two strokes of the pedal. Similarly, the hand-operated spindle topping apparatus is a very useful tool for filling the empty bolsters with the required quantity of fresh spindle oil. The novel feature of the apparatus is its volume control mechanism, which facilitates dosing out the required quantity of spindle oil to suit the capacity of different bolsters in the textile industry. We also found the apparatus to be of great help while lubricating the various components in the machinery. By using the above equipment, we could reduce the lubrication time considerably and also save about 8-10 per cent of lubricating oil.”

Overall benefits of the modified dispensing equipment

- The volume control mechanism ensures exact quantity of lubricant, thereby saving 8-10 per cent of oil

- Enhanced life of tapes as oil spillage is avoided. Spinning ring frame remains clean

- Cleaner environment around spinning

- Reduced downtime of machinery

- Manually operated, saves electricity as compared to imported spindle servicing unit

- Easy pedal operations with lesser fatigue

- Portable and compact

- Single person can operate any unit

Table:

Types, application and drawbacks of equipments in use

Hand operated spindle oil filling can

* Small capacity

* Measured quantity of oil cannot be pumped

* Both hands engaged in holding and operating the equipment

Palm-size oil filter

* Tiring of thumb during pumping of oil for large number of points requiring only 1-2 drops of oil.

Oil cans with thumb-plunger for pumping out oil

* Small capacity

* Hands and thumb fatigue

* Measured quantity of oil cannot be pumped out

Hand-operated oil pump

* Small capacity

* Cannot be used continuously

Hand-operated oil extraction pump

* Both hands occupied in operation

* Operation involves continuous movement of hands resulting in early fatigue

Spindle servicing unit (imported)

* Imported, so cost is high and payback period has no incentive

* Though electrically operated, the unit is not portable for covering the mills’ machinery

* Requires frequent maintenance

Hand-operated greasing pump

* Small capacity

* Both hands remain engaged during operation

* Measured quantity of grease cannot be pumped

* Operator fatigues soon as the whole unit is to be taken to the greasing point

Hand-operated greasing pump (10 kgs)

* Predetermined quantity of grease cannot be dispensed

* Two operators required for operation.