Volume 50

Number 4

APRIL, 1964

Lubncatlon
A Technical Publication Devoted to
the Selection and Use of Lubricants

PUBLISHED

TEXACO
TEXACO

PETROLEUM

BY

INC.
PRODUCTS

Scrap
pilesgod0wn-when
"Stop
Loss"
goes
in
Texacos "Stop Loss" Program of Organized
Lubricationis the proven plan for starving scrap
piles and ridding your plant of all they represent:
the damaged tools, ruined machines, rejects,
wasted lubricants, unscheduled downtime.
"Stop Loss" gives plant management closer
control over one o/the biggest areas o/waste in
any plant: Maintenance inefficiency.
Heres how:
"Stop Loss" arms management with an exclusive Lubrication Control System that makes it
possible to pinpoint hidden costs and eliminate
needless downtime.

At the same time, a training program increases

the el~ciency and productivity of your entire
maintenance work force.
The results: Maintenance costs go down; thousands of lost man hours are eliminated; production efficiency increases; production quality
improves; production output steps up; lube inventories are reduced. And scrap piles go hungry.
Send for our new "Stop Loss" brochure. It
gives you all the facts and figures about "Stop
Loss" in action. Texaco Inc., 135 East 42nd St.,
New York, N. Y. 10017, Dept. L-300.

LUBRICATION
A TECHNICAL PUBLICATION DEVOTED TO THE SELECTION AND USE OF LUBRICANTS
Published bF

Texaco Inc.,

135 East 42nd Street,

NewYork, N. Y. 10017

A.C. Long,Chairman
of the Boardof Directors;J. W.Foley,ViceChairman
of the Boardof Directors;J. H.Rambin,
Jr.,
President;HarveyCash,A. W.Baucum,
M.J. Epley,Jr., J. W.Green,T. A. Mangelsdorf,
J. H. Pipkin, ExecutiveVice
Presidents; \V. E. Avery, W.G. Copeland, S. T. Crossland, R. J. Derby, C. H. Dodson, Henry Flynn,
M.F. Granville,BenHalseIl,O.B. Hocker,L. C. Kemp,
Jr., KerrynKing,J. V.C. Malcolmson,
J. I. Mingay,
JohnNoble,
W.H. Ryer,H.O. Woodruff,
VicePresidents;W.J. Clayton,Secretary;R. G. Rankin,Comptroller;
M.L. Nee,Treasurer.

Vol.L

April, 1964

lVo.
4

COPYRIGItTS:The contents ol LUBRICATION

are copyrighted and cannot be reprinted legally by other publications without written prior
approval lrom Texaco and then only it the article is quoted exactly and accompaniedby the credit line "Courtesy ol Texacos magazine
LUBRICATION",Copyright 1964 by Texaco Inc. Copyright under International Copyright Convention. All Rights Reserved under PanAmerican Copyright Convention.
CHANGE
OFADDRESS:In reporting change o/ address please give both old and new addresses: Write to--C. R. Frohlin, Texaco Inc.,
135 E. 42nd St., New York, N. Y. 10017: or H. E. Whiting, Texaco Canada Ltd., 1425 Mountain St., Montreal 25, Quebec, Canada.

EUROPEAN HYDRAULIC RAILWAY

TRANSMISSIONS
HEpuffing and snorting steam locomotivehas
long been a symbol of power for hauling
freight and passengersacross the land, through
fields and woods,mountainsand plains, along endless miles of railway track. However,the steam
locomotive was, and still is in manyrespects, an
inefficient form of powergeneration and it was the
desire for better efficiency and overall operating
economythat led to the developmentof diesel and
electric railwaytraction.
Railwaydieselization has powerfulincentives in:

velopedin the steamcylinders is transmitted directly to the axles, this is not possible in the case of
diesel traction becausethe speed of a diesel engine
can only be varied within narrow limits and the
engine cannot be started under load. Three types of
power transmission exist for diesel locomotives,
viz.:
( 1 ) mechanicaltransmissionwith friction clutch
and gear case,
(2) electrical transmissionby direct coupledgenerator feeding electric traction motorsdriv--lower operating and maintenancecosts due to
ing the axles via reductiongears,
muchmoreefficient utilization of the fuel and
hydraulic transmission by torque converters
(3)
less time required for servicing and overhaul,
and hydraulic couplings.
-- less weight and space for equal power.
Mechanicaltransmission, although attractive from
Electric railwaytraction also has incentives in its a transmissionefficiency standpoint, has been found
favor but is not discussedhere since it is outsidethe to be applicable only to small units, developingnot
scopeof this subject matter.
more than about 200 HP. In the higher power
Althoughsteam locomotives certainly have not range, the friction clutch generally is not able to
yet disappearedand are still faithfully pulling their resist the high shock loads or heavy wear when
loads in manyareas, they have in somecountries changing gears and to withstand the severity of
becomealmost a curiosity, a thing of the past, re- railway service conditions in general. Frequent
tired honorably to the railway museum.Railway operating and mechanicaltrouble must be expected
diesel poweris well established and its use is ex- in such high output applications.
pandingrapidly almost everywhere.
Electrical transmissionis satisfactory for all sizes
Whereas in steam locomotives the power de- and powersof diesel locomotivesand is by far the
[37]

LUBRICATION
most commonlyused. The popularity of electrical
transmission has for manyyears delayed the developmentand acceptance of hydraulic transmission
for railway use in manyareas. In Germany,however, considerations of national economyin the
years preceding World WarII favored diesel hydraulic rather than diesel electric transmission and
it is in this country that diesel hydraulic railway
traction has cometo full development.
Theoperatingcharacteristics of a diesel hydraulic
locomotiveare typical of other types of machinery
employinghydraulic transmissions. For example,
full engine powercan be fed into the transmission
at stand-still or very lowspeeds without overloading
or stalling the engine. Unlike a mechanicaltransmission, the hydraulic transmission eliminates sudden shock loads, thereby protecting the engine and
intermediategears.

April, 1964

Courtesy ot Voith Getriebe K.G.

Figure 2-- Parts of a hydraulic coupling.

The fluid or hydraulic coupling consists basically of two elements: a centrifugal pumpor imOPERATING PRINCIPLES
OF THE
peller connectedto the driving shaft, and a turbine
wheel or runner on the output shaft. There is no
RAILWAY HYDRAULIC
mechanical connection between both shafts but
TRANSMISSION
fluid surrounds the movingparts and forms a workThe transmission of power through a fluid is
ing circuit inside the housing, whichusually rotates
based either on the hydrostatic or the hydrodynamic with the impeller. Figure 1 represents a schematic
(or hydrokinetic) principle. In hydrostatic power cut of a fluid or hydraulic coupling, whereasFigure
transmissions there is no energy transferred as 2 showsa photographof its parts: half of the houskinetic energyto the fluid. Themotivatingforce in ing containing the pumpblades on the left, the
such systems is a change in pressure whereasthe turbine wheelor runner in the middleand the other
velocity of the fluid usually remains constant. The half of the housingon the right.
conventionalhydraulic systems as fitted on presses
The operating principle of the fluid coupling is
and machinetools are examplesof hydrostatic trans- quite simple. Whenthe driving shaft rotates, the
missions.
impeller (A) draws fluid in at the center which
In hydrodynamicpowertransmissions, energy is then forced outwards through the pumpblades by
transferred by a changein velocity or kinetic energy centrifugal action. Leaving the impeller at its
periphery, the fluid is forced on to the runner
blades which causes the turbine wheel (B), and
thus the output shaft, to rotate. The fluid flows
through the runner blades to the center where it
returns to the impeller.
This is the operating principle of the fluid coupling in its simplest form.Asa refinement,a certain
amount of fluid maybe continuously withdrawn,
OUTPUT
SHAFTcooled and returned to the circuit in order to maintain low operating temperatures. Anothervariation
NPUT
SHAFT
involves the removalof a certain amountof fluid to
give additional "slip," thereby providing variable
speedcontrol.
The fluid couplingis a type of clutch whichautomatically transmits powerand in whichthe output
torque is invariably equal to the input torque. The
torque converter, on the other hand, offers a means
Figure 1 -- Schematicview of a hydraulic coupling.
of multiplying the starting torque of the engine and
provides a fully automatic stepless transmission.
of the fluid, the pressure remaining more or less Torqueconverters differ in construction from fluid
constant. This is the principle on which the fluid couplings in that stationary reaction blades have
coupling and the torque converter are based and been included in the fluid circuit, thus forming a
whichis therefore of interest in connection with unit which is capable of absorbing more kinetic
the railway hydraulictransmission.
energyfromthe fluid.
[38]

LUBRICATION

Figure 3 -- Schematicview of a torque converter.

Figure 3 represents a schematic cut of a torque

converter. The impeller or pump(A) on the driving shaft starts the fluid circuit but the fluid after
passing through the turbine blades of the runner
(B) nowreturns to the center of the pumpvia
set of fixed vanes (C) around the inside of the
stationary housing. The number,shape, dimensions
and angle of the blades have a pronouncedeffect on
the performanceof the converter. The blades are
accurately machinedand have a high surface finish
to minimizeloss of energy due to fluid friction,
which wouldreduce the maximum
efficiency of the
system.

Courtesy o[ Voith Getriebe K.G.

Figure 4-- Parts of a torque converter.

Figure 4 showsa photograph of the torque converter parts: in the middle the pumpwheel (or
impeller), on the right the turbine wheel (or
runner), and on the left, part of the housing with
fixed vanes.
Railwayhydraulic transmissions of different designs exist but basically they represent various combinations of fluid couplings, torque converters and
transmission gears. Someof the more commondesigns will be discussedhere.
DEVELOPMENT
AND USE OF THE
RAILWAY HYDRAULIC
TRANSMISSION
The inventor of the hydraulic transmission is
somewhatcontroversial but the history of the rail~vay hydraulic transmission clearly goes back to
HermannF6ttinger whobuilt the first fluid torque
converter in Germanyin 1905. His ideas are contained in the basic Germanpatent No. 221422
dated June 24, 1905. F6ttingers objective was to
design a powertransmission for steamturbine ships,
capable of transmitting the powerof the high speed
turbine (4000-8000 rpm) to the slow running
propeller (70-150 rpm). He achieved a torque converter efficiency of about 85%,which was lower
than that of a fluid coupling,also built by F6ttinger.

[39]

LUBRICATION
The Europeanrailways showedvery little interest
in F6ttingers designs at that time, as the power
transmitting characteristics of the steam locomotive
were consideredquite satisfactory. It wasnot until
around 1930 that the attention of the locomotive
designers was directed to F6ttingers principle in
connection with diesel traction. The low thermal
efficiency of the steam locomotiveinduced railway
engineers to experimentwith the diesel engine and
soon the high speed diesel engine was foundto be a
very promising power source for railway traction
in viewof its relatively high thermalefficiency, low
weight and space for comparable power, and easy
maintenance. The power transmission problem,
whichhas already been discussed briefly in the introductory chapter, was solved in close cooperation between the GermanFederal Railways and
various Germanequipment manufacturers, in particular Voith and Maybach.
As mentionedbefore, the railway hydraulic transmission is basically a combinationof one or more

April, 1964

Theengine drive shaft (A) drives the first transmission shaft (B) via a gear which steps up the
engine turning speed (for example, about 750 rpm)
to approximately 3,000 rpm. This high speed is
required because the pumps (impellers) of the
fluid couplingand torque converter, whichare both
connectedto this shaft, operate efficiently at speeds
around 3,000 rpmbut not at the muchlower crankshaft speeds of the usual types of railway engines.
Whenthe engine is not running, both the coupling and the converter are emptyand the transmissionfluid is collected at the bottomof the sump.
Whenthe engine is started, the oil pressure system
for bearing lubrication comesinto operation but
the regulating valve (H) remains closed so that
fluid can reach either the couplingor the converter
and the impellers idle with the transmission shaft.
By pushing a button, the locomotivedriver then
actuates the regulating valve (H) so that the oil
pump(P) fills the torque converter (C). The fluid
coupling (D) at this time remains empty. The converter pumpstarts to drive the turbine runner as
described previously. The runner is connected to
the second transmission shaft (E) whichvia a reduction gear drives the output shaft (F). The
same reduction gear drives the governor (G)
which, whenit reaches a certain speed, actuates
the regulating valve (H) and thereby switches the
oil flow from the converter to the coupling. The
torque converter is emptied and the fluid coupling
(D) is filled withoil, therebytaking overthe transmission of the engine powerto the output shaft as
its turbine runner is also connected to the second
transmission shaft (E). Whenthe speed of the output shaft decreases (for example, whenthe locomotive has to climb a steep hill) and moretorque has
to be applied, the governor at a certain speed
switches back the oil flow to the torque converter.
The alternating use of torque converter and fluid
coupling in this type of railway transmission is

Courtesy o[ Voith Getriebe K.G.

Figure 5 -- Schematicview of a Voith transmissionwith
one coupling and one torque converter.

torque converters and fluid couplings, supplemented

with transmission gears and other auxiliary parts.
Figure 5 presents a schematic drawing of a simple
Voith transmission consisting of one torque converter and one fluid coupling, designed for small
shunting locomotives and railcars up to 200 HP.
This drawingmaybe used to describe the operation
of the Voith transmission in general, as the more
powerful, more complicated units function basically alongthe samelines.
[40]

Courtesyo/Voith GetriebetC.G.
Figure 6 -- Schematicview of a Voith L37z transmission.

LUBRICATION
based on the desire to maintain optimumefficiency
of the transmission under varying locomotive operating conditions. Under low speed, high torque
conditionsthe torque converteris the mostefficient,
but at higher speeds its efficiency drops and the
fluid coupling then becomesmoreefficient.

Courtesy o~ Voith Getriebe K.G.

Figure 7 -- Simplified diagram for a Voith L306r transmission.

The size of engine and type of service determine

what combination of torque converters and fiuid
couplingsprovides the smoothesttransition at optimumefficiency levels. Figure 6, for example, presents a schematic diagramof a Voith transmission
fitted with one converter and two couplings with
optimumefficiencies at different speeds. Figure 7
presents a simplified diagramof a Voith transmission for diesel locomotives up to 1000 HP, which
consists of three torque converters, one for starting
and two for mediumand high traveling speeds
respectively. In this case, two reduction gears with
various step-downratios transmit the torques of the
individual converters to the reversing gear and output shaft.
The Maybach-Mekydrotransmission, shown in
Figure 8, is a combination of a hydraulic torque
converter and a conventional four-step reduction
gear box. In this transmission, the converter remainspermanentlyfilled with oil, the switching of
the gears being done by hydraulically controlled
mechanical means. The turbine wheel of the converter can be movedalong the shaft by hydraulic
pressure to engage or disengage with the pump
wheel. Figure 9 shows the turbine wheel engaged,
as will be the case whenthe locomotiveis running.
Figure 10 shows the turbine wheel in the disengaged position which occurs when the locomotive
stands still and for short instants during operation
whenswitching from one set of gears to another.
This changing of gears takes place automatically

Courtesy o/Maybaeh-Motorenbau GmbH

Figure 8 ~ Maybach-Mekydro
transmission.

[41]

LUBRICATION

April, 1964

Courtesy el Maybach-Motorenbau GmbH

Figure 9 -- Maybachconverter with
turbine wheel engaged,

Figure 10 -- Maybachconverter with

turbine wheel disengaged.

at certain speeds and loads by a hydraulic control

system. In the disengagedposition, a set of special
blades on the turbine wheelis movedinto the fluid
circuit and provides a slight reverse torque on the
shaft, whichtakes off the load fromthe dogclutches
and thereby permits easy changingof the gears.
In addition to the Voith and Maybachrailway
hydraulic transmissions, a numberof other interesting designs exist of whichonly a few are mentioned
here due to lack of space.
The British Vulcan-Sinclair traction type fluid
coupling shownin Figure 11 is a hydraulic coupling

which is usually combinedwith the epicyclic type

SCGgear box. The Vulcan-Sinclair type SCR.4
scoop control fluid coupling shownin Figure 12 is
quite different in that the amountof oil in the
working circuit between impeller (c) and runner
(b) is varied to obtain the desired speedof the output shaft. The operation of this coupling can be
describedbriefly as follows.

Courtesyo! Fluidrive EngineeringCo. Ltd.

Figure 12--Vulcan Sinclair SCR.4scoopcontrol fluid coupling.

Courtesy o/Fluidrive Engineering Co. Ltd.

Figure 11 -- Vulcan Sinclair traction type fluid coupling.

[42]

The entire casing rotates with the input shaft so

that the oil, due to centrifugal force, formsa rotating annulus against the outer wall of the casing,

LUBRICATION
leaving the workingcircuit of the coupling empty
whenthe scoop tube (g) is completely retracted.
Thescoop tube can be slid radially outwards,either
by hand or automatic control, by meansof an external lever (h) so that its tip enters the oil in the
casing and a certain amountof oil is transferred to
the workingcircuit. The setting of the scoop tube
determinesthe amountof oil in the workingcircuit
and thereby the speed of the output shaft. Continuous circulation of the oil is maintainedas oil
escapes from the working circuit, through small
leak-off holes (e) into the reservoir casing. As
result the volumeof oil in the circuit and hencethe
powertransmission are reduced progressively as the
scooptube is retracted radially inwards.

Courtesyo[ ,~lintstr),
and o/International

o[ Railways-India
Railway Journal

Figure 14 -- Suri hydraulic transmission.

rect drive is applied at higher speeds, again maintaining high transmission efficiency in top range.
A recent development in the field of railway
hydraulic transmissions is the Suri transmission
whichoriginated in India and is shownin Figure 14.
Within the range up to about 70% of maximum
locomotivespeed, the input shaft drives the output
shaft via a Brockhousetype torque converter and
intermediate gears. Whenthe 70%speed limit is
reached, the oil fromthe torque converter is transConrtes~ol SvenskaRotor MaskinerA.B.
ferred automaticallyto a small size, high slip fluid
Figure 13 -- SRMhydraulic transmission type DS.
coupling (fluid synchronizer) which gives smooth
The SRMhydraulic transmission developed in engagementof the plate clutch providing direct
Swedenis produced in several types suitable for mechanicaldrive in the high speed range. This high
railway use. The SRMtransmission type DSshown slip fluid coupling acts as a synchronizer between
in Figure 13 is the most sophisticated in design in input and output shafts and thereby provides a
that it is able to provide optimumperformance smooth change-over with uninterrupted torque
over the entire speed range. The hydraulic torque from fluid to mechanical transmission and vice
converter contains two independently rotating tur- versa.
bine wheels. In the first range one turbine wheelis
rotating forwardand connecteddirectly to the outFIELD EXPERIENCE
WITH
put shaft; the other is rotating backwardand deRAILWAY HYDRAULIC
livering its energyvia a planetary gear to the outTRANSMISSIONS
put shaft. This arrangement permits double rotation during the initial low speedtractive effort and
Thefirst diesel hydraulicrailcar, an 80 HPunit,
thereby quickly reaching optimumtransmission
was delivered to the Austrian Railways in 1933.
efficiency. \Vhenthe locomotivereaches about 35~ Trials with hydraulic transmissions for higher outof its maximum
speed, movementof the backward put diesel locomotivesfollowedand as the result of
rotating turbine wheel is automatically stopped by generally good experience, the GermanFederal
application of brakebands. Theblades of the stalled Railwaysdecidedin 1948to use exclt*sively the hyturbine wheel nowact as stationary guide vanes draulic transmissionsystemon all their diesel locoforminga torque converter with the forward rotatmotives and railcars. The rapid expansionof diesel
ing turbine wheel and high efficiency through the hydraulic traction in Germany
is illustrated by the
second speed range is thereby maintained. When fact that the numberof diesel hydraulic locomotives
the locomotive reaches about 75 %of its maximum in service has risen from 142 at the end of 1953to
speed, the mainclutch locks automatically and di- 985 at the end of 1960.
[43]

LUBRICATION

April, 1964

Courtesy o/German Federal Railways

Figure 15 -- Diesel hydraulic locomotivetype V80.

The GermanFederal Railways have more or less

One of the early V80locomotives is shownin
standardized on three types of diesel locomotives, Figure 15; a simplified cross-sectional view of the
viz.
--a 600 HPunit (type V60) for shunting serv- same unit is presented in Figure 16. Fromthis cut
can be seen how the power from the engine is
ice
transmitted via the hydraulic transmission under
--a 1000 HP unit (type V80 and now type
V100) for heavy shunting, passenger and the cab floor and the reduction gear cases in both
freight service
bogies to the axle drives on all four journals, all
--a 2000 HP unit (V200) for fast freight
driving parts being connected by double universal
and passengerservice.
joint drive shafts.

Courtesy o! GermanFederal Railways

Figure 16 m Schematicview of a locomotivetype VSO.

[44]

LUBRICATION

Courtesyo! Krauss-MaffeiA.G.
Figure 17 -- Germanbuilt ML 4000 CC hydraulic locomotivefor USA.

Diesel hydraulic railway traction is growingin

popularity in manycountries of the world. A number of 4000 HPdiesel hydraulic locomotives built
in Germanywere recently delivered to two U. S.
major railroads, which represent the largest size
of such units in use anywhereand the first diesel
hydraulic locomotives of such powerin operation
in the U.S.A. Oneof these locomotivesis shownin
Figure 17. Figure 18 represents a cross section of
one of these 4000 HPunits, while the hydraulic

transmission fitted on these locomotivesis shownin

Figure 19. This is a three-converter type Voith
transmission with built-in reversing gear and attached hydro-dynamicbrake (a hydraulic coupling
with controllable variable oil fill) to reduce the
wearof the brake shoes on long down-hillslopes.
Regular maintenance of the railway hydraulic
transmission in service is confined to periodic
checksof the oil level with topping up as required,
cleaningof filters, inspection of seals for possible

Courtesy o~ Krauss-Maffei A.G.

Figure 18 -- Schematicview of ML 4000 CC hydraulic locomotive.

[45]

LUBRICATION

April, 1964

cal gears fitted in the transmission and must therefore meet certain minimumviscosity and load
carrying ability requirements. In the case of the
Maybachtransmission, it is moreoverdesired that
the transmissionfluid can also be used for lubricating the diesel engine.
A goodrailway hydraulic transmission fluid must
possess the followingproperties:
--low viscosity, but sufficiently high for bearing
and gear lubrication
--high viscosity index or, in other words, minimumchange in viscosity with temperature
-- highspecific gravity, if possible
-- low pour point, to prevent waxcrystallization
at low ambient temperatures
Courtesy ol Voith Getri~be K.G.
-- no tendency to foaming
-- rapid entrained air release
Hgure19 -- Hydraulic transmission of ML 4000 CC
diesel locomotive.
--adequate load carrying ability (extreme pressure properties) to protect the gears
oil leaks and testing of the proper functioning of
--no decomposition at temperatures of 130C
control elements. Laboratory analysis of the conand somewhathigher
dition of the transmission oil will assist in deter--good oxidation stability for long service life
mining the useful service life of the oil. Under
--compatibility with metallic and non-metallic
normalservice conditions it is generally not necestransmission parts, hence non-corrosive and
sary to renewthe transmission oil more frequently
no attack of rubberseals
than oncea year.
-wide
availability and acceptableprice.
Inspection, repair and overhaul workcan be performedin a normallyequippedrailway shop and reEspecially developedmineral oils are generally
quires no specially trained personnel. Thereliability recognizedto present the mostpractical solution for
of the railway hydraulic transmissionis illustrated
satisfying all the above requirements simultaneby the fact that in Germany,where the normalin- ously. Somesynthetic fluids, such as chlorinated
spection period for locomotivesin line service is hydrocarbons,mayappear attractive from the standabout 190,000 miles, the transmissions of such point of viscosity and specific gravity, but their
locomotives are normally overhauled only about thermal stability at higher temperatures is often
every 380,000miles. With regard to shunting serv- doubtful. Moreover,limited availability and realice, it is considered goodpractice (in Belgiumas tively high price makethemrather unattractive for
well as Germany)to overhaul the transmissions
railwayuse.
of the shunting locomotives about every 60,000
The mineral oils which are generally used for
miles which corresponds to about 20,000 service railway hydraulic transmissions must meet the
hoursor onceeverythree years.
quality requirementsspecified by the manufacturers
of this equipment. These requirements differ for
different makes of transmissions as can be seen
RAILWAY HYDRAULIC
from Table I. The following commentsmay conTRANSMISSION
FLUIDS
tribute to a better understanding of the need for
The primary purpose of the fluid to be used in the special properties formulatedin someof these
railway hydraulic transmissions is to transfer ki- specifications.
netic energy from the power input to the power Viscosity: As already mentionedbriefly, the visoutput shaft. If optimumkinetic energy transfer cosity of the oil must be a compromisebetween
were the only consideration, the ideal fluid should maximum
fluidity for easy, rapid flow and suffihave an extremely low viscosity for easy flow and cient bodyto satisfactorily lubricate bearings and
the highest possible specific gravity for maximum gears. The former requirement is of particular imkinetic energy transfer. Water, for example,would portance in the case of Voith and Vulcan-Sinclair
in these respects be a quite attractive transmission transmissions to permit rapid emptyingand filling
fluid.
of the couplings and torque converters. However,
However,the fluid must also fulfill a numberof a very thin mineraloil, apart fromlacking in suffiother functions which necessitate a compromiseon cient lubricating properties, will generally have a
viscosity and specific gravity. The fluid mustbe a rather low flash point and maytherefore present
satisfactory lubricant for the bearings and mechani- an undesirablefire hazard.
[46]

LUBRICATION

TABLE 1
SOME SPECIFICATION REQUIREMENTS
FOR RAILWAY HYDRAULIC TRANSMISSION OILS
Specific Gravity at 20C.
FlashPoint, C
Fire
Point,
C
....
Viscosity, Engler at 50C .............
100C..................
Viscosity
Index
.....
Aniline
Point,
C .....
PourPoint, C
Ash, % ..................
Neutralization No., mg KOH/g .......
Specific Heat, KCal/Kg C at 20C ....
Foam Properties
................

FZGWearTest (A, 8.3, 90C):

load stage of rapid wear increase ....
specific wear factor .
AlmenWielandTest, Kg
Oxidation Test, 100 hrs/200C
Corrosion Test ........................
Stability in service and storage.......
Compatibilitywith rubber:
volumeincrease, %......................
changein Shore hardness, %.......

MAYBACH
approx. 0.875
above 195
-3.5 - 4.5
above 1.5
above 80
--- 30 max
---20 ml max
(DIN 51566)
at 25 and 95C

SRM
approx. 0.88
above 150
--1.22- 1.28
-above 85
below --35
---satisfactory

VOITH
approx. 0.870
above 160
above 180
approx. 3.2
approx. 1.45
approx. 100
---25 max.
approx. 0
approx. 0.3
approx. 0.45
must pass actual
benchservicetest

above11 th
approx. 0.10
--pass
no deposits

---pass
pass
-satisfactory
---

11 th min.
approx. 0.2
approx. 1500
w

3 max.
5 max.
Note:
Useof sameoil as for
engine(Supplement
1
recommended

The actual viscosity of the transmission oil in

service depends, of course, on the operating temperatt, re and the viscosity index of the oil. The oil
temperature depends on the efficiency of the oil
cooling system, the type of locomotive service as
well as the driving habits of the engineer. For most
types and sizes of diesel hydraulic locomotives, the
engine and the transmission have a combined water
cooling system, the water being aircooled by means
of a fan driven from the engine shaft. A system
of safety switches will cut out the engine if the
cooling water or transmission oil temperature exceeds a certain limit.
In normal operation the operating temperature
of a Voith transmission remains well below 110C,
but under severe service conditions the transmis[47]

pass
no deposits
3 max.
3 max.

sion oil temperature may be higher and for this

reason, Voith have recently increased their viscosity specification from 2 Engler at 50C to approximately 3.2 Engler at the same test temperature. This slightly higher viscosity will give better
protection against wear of bearings and gears with
practically no loss in transmission efficiency.
In Maybachtransmissions a low viscosity torque
fluid, although providing optimum torque converter efficiency, gives more frictional heat in the
gears and higher oil temperatures than an SAE30
or SAE40 diesel engine oil. The latter type of product is therefore generally preferred in Maybach
transmissions, which has the added advantage of the
use of one and the same oil for engine and transmission.

LUBRICATION

April, 1964

Specific gravity: For maximumkinetic energy

transfer a highspecific gravity is desirable but this
requirement is in conflict with the high viscosity
index required to prevent excessive thinning out
of the oil at high operating temperatures. Suitable
mineraloils of paraffinic type with goodviscosity/temperature properties generally have specific
gravities in the rangeof 0.87 to 0.90 and this is the
level of specific gravity consideredacceptable from
the point of viewof overall quality characteristics
andavailability.

Extremepressure properties: In all different types

of railway hydraulic transmissions the oil has also
to lubricate a numberof mechanicalgears and must
therefore have sufficient load carrying ability to
prevent damageor abnormalwear of the gear teeth.
In this connection, Voith and Maybachspecify
their requirements in terms of the GermanFZG
gear weartest whereinthe oil is tested under controlled conditions on a set of spur gears to which
increasingloads are applied in successivestages.
Compatibility: Transmissionoils should, of course,
Pour Point: The pour point of the oil should be be non-corrosiveto all metallic parts of the equipwell belowthe lowest anticipated ambient tempera- mentat all operating temperatures. Sometransmishave bronze labyrinth type seals with very
ture, otherwise wax formation in the transmission sions
narrow
on the main shafts. Corrosive
oil during periods the locomotiveis left standing attack ofclearances
these
seals
wouldcause difficulties and the
outside in cold weather may interfere with the oil must therefore not
attack bronze at temperaproper functioning of the regulating valve and tures up to about 130C.
The oil should also not
pumpof the transmission whenrestarting the loco- cause swelling or hardening
of the synthetic rubber
motive.
seals used in these transmissions as this mightlead
to leakageand loss of oil.
Foaming: Foamingor slow entrained air release
will seriously interfere with the operation of the Stability: The oil should retain its goodlubricating
transmission and will promoteoxidation of the oil. and other properties and not form sludge under
The ability of an oil to free itself rapidly of en- actual operating conditions (intensive mixingwith
trained air and suppress surface foam depends on air and temperatures of the order of 100C) over
its surface tension, specific gravity and viscosity. a period of at least 5000hours.
Proper selection of suitable base oils and applicaHighquality additive type hydraulic oils are retion of a balanced combinationof additives are of quired to meet the exacting requirements of railgreat importancefor imparting these properties to way hydraulic transmissions. The petroleum inthe finished oil. Rather than relying on arbitrary dustry has developedsuch oils which will provide
laboratory tests, Voith evaluate the foamingchar- dependable and efficient powertransmission and
acteristics of an oil by actual benchtests in one of will keep overhaul and maintenance costs of this
their transmissions.
vital piece of equipmentto a minimum.

Printed in U.S.A. by
The Georgian Press Inc.
175 Varick Street
New York, N. Y. 10014

[48]

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