Efficiency of cleaning used engine oils with bulk filters

The filtration of working fluids used in various sectors of the national economy is an important process for maintaining the equipment used in working condition, as well as a means of improving the efficiency of using fuel and energy resources. One of the most effective methods of using used engine oils (UEO) in agricultural enterprises is to clean them from the pollutants accumulated during operation, which include mechanical impurities (dust, water, wear products of engine parts) and degradation products of the oil itself (acids, oxy-acids, carbenes, carbides and others), followed by the use of purified oils as working fluids in those units and mechanisms that allow the operation of such oils under operating conditions. To ensure the subsequent use of purified UEOs, it is necessary, first of all, to remove mechanical impurities from it. The aim of the current paper was to determine the dynamics of contamination of the filter granular layer and the quality of oil purification. The following mathematical models were obtained: the dynamics of changes in the content of mechanical impurities depending on the initial concentration and settling time; the dynamics of changes in the filtration coefficient; the dynamics of changes in the pressure drop on the filter. The results of a theoretical study of pollution dynamics are compared with experimental studies.