Every Lubricant Marketer making performance claims against the ACEA engine oil sequences must sign the Lubricant Marketer’s “Letter of Conformance” as a declaration that their finished lubricants carrying ACEA engine oil sequence claims comply with the provisions of the European Engine Lubricant Quality Management System, or EELQMS. In addition, the Lubricant Marketer must demonstrate that the candidate(s) formulation(s) supporting the final formulation has/have been evaluated according to tests listed in the corresponding ACEA engine oil sequence category and all the limits have been met. This essential step is covered by section 5 of ATIEL Code of Practice, Candidate Data Package (CDP) developed in accordance with
- The Additive Technical Committee (ATC) Code of Practice when it comes to Co ordinating European Council (CEC) test methods.
- The American Chemistry Council (ACC) Code of Practice when it comes to American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) test methods.
- The Society of Automotive Engineers of Japan (JSAE) requirements when it comes to Japanese Automotive Standards Organization (JASO) test methods.
It is the responsibility of the Lubricant Developer or Lubricant Marketer, if also the developer, to accurately document the Candidate Data Package which needs to contain (but not limited to) the following information:
- Initial and supporting formulation composition to support the final formulation along with a set of defined physical and chemical characteristics including those from base stocks used in the composition of initial, supporting and final formulations
– Formulation flexibility offered by the different Code of Practices (ATIEL, ATC, ACC) such as Base Oil Interchange (BOI), Viscosity Grade Read Across (VGRA) Viscosity Modifier Interchange (VMI) and minor modifications on the additive system need to be indicated in line with guidelines developed in Code of Practices and appropriately documented as required (level 1 support or level 2 support for additive system modifications). - A summary of registration, generated by
European Registration Centre (ERC) , for all engine tests specified in ACEA sequence for which the lubricant is developed along with test results on initial as well as supporting formulations providing the test is declared operationally valid
– Engine tests will need to be run as per the specified test method (CEC, ASTM, JASO) in the ACEA engine oil sequence by an ISO 17025 accredited laboratory to guarantee the quality of the results obtained. This is based on test precision achieved during test development and thoroughly monitored throughout the life of the engine test. - Bench tests, including elastomer
compatibility results, as per the specified test methods in the ACEA engine oil sequences and run on the final formulation. Although not registered like engine tests, use of CEC and/or ASTM bench test methods also guarantees that the quality and precision of the test results obtained are controlled to the same standards as engine tests. Upon completion of the Candidate Data Package, the Lubricant Marketer, whether the Lubricant Developer or not, will need to complete the check lists (initial program and program extension if applicable) as well as the Performance Data Set compiling engine and bench test results obtained to qualify the lubricant against the targeted ACEA engine oil sequence category. This mandatory step will ensure correct documentation as well as traceability of ACEA performance claims.
Lubricant Marketers should always seek the advice of their technology provider in the claims they are making and in turn the technology provider should make available a copy of the Candidate Data Pack and supporting Performance Test Data upon reasonable request.
You can contact:
EELQMS Eleonora Piccinni
E-mail: info@eelqms.eu
EELQMS website: www.eelqms.eu
