Research & Development

GUIDELINES

FL Selenia product ranges are developed in close partnership with the constructors to anticipate and cater for future market requirements. These are also designed to offer customers products that guarantee good and reliable performance as well as being environmentally friendly.

Principal stage of the development process:
from market demand to finished product

TECHNOLOGY

The process of designing a lubricating oil capable of satisfying constructors' and market needs is long and complex. The main stages of this process are highlighted below.

CHEMISTRY LABORATORY		Liquid Chromatography This is a procedure which is carried out at low temperatures by injecting oil into a transportation liquid... ? Gas Chromatography This technique is carried out at high temperatures in order to break down the product on a molecular level... ?
RESEARCH LABORATORIES		Infrared Spectrophotometer Each component of a lubircant performes differently when subjected to infrared radiation... ? Plasma The product is sprayed onto a magnetic field containing a "flame" (plasma) at 10,000? C... ?
THERMAL ANALYSIS LABORATORY		Calorimetry A good lubricant must be both chemically and physically stable... ? Thermogravimetry With the TGA (Thermo Gravimeter Analyser) it is possible to predict the rate consumption of different types of lubricant in operation... ? Noack This is an international oil consumption test that simulates an oil sump from the thermal stresses point of view... ?
TRIBOLOGICAL LABORATORY		Load resistance A traditional test which clearly highlights a lubricant's efficiency at counteracting friction... ?
ENGINE TESTING ROOM		Automatism Tests carried out within the testing booths are continuous (day and night) and last between 100 and 1000 hours... ? Simulation Within the engine testing booths the absence of the vehicle absorbing energy is also compensated for... ? Rolling Road To assess a lubricant's performance under all driving conditions, a car is subjected to... ? Automatic Driver On the rolling road, the car is driven by a robot using all available controls... ?
ENGINE OVERHAUL WORKSHOP		Engine Rating At the end of testing of a lubricant, the engine is examined and rated... ?
USED OIL LABORATORY		Technical assistance to the Client By examining used oil it is possible to determine the entire life story of an engine... ? Ferrography A sample of oil used in the engine testing booths is made to flow inside a magnetic field... ?