HJ Smartlube 4.0

Why choose HJ Lubtronic

HJ Smartlube 4.0 is the newest solution in advanced lubrication technology for 2-stroke marine engines.

With our newst product, HJ Smartlube 4.0 we have removed the lubrication pump and moved the ability to inject lube oil up-stream into the injection vale - This enables us to introduce new revolutionizing injection algorithms, enabling advantages not seen before. 

Background

At Hans Jensen Lubricators we appreciate a good challenge and with the introduction of our latest generation of cylinder lubrication systems, HJ Smartlube 4.0, we have created the world’s best cylinder lubrication system.

The system is engineered to simultaneously, be flexible to accommodate different engine designs and operation conditions, ensure optimal lubrication no matter the type of fuel in use, have a high degree of flexibility, offer large savings in cylinder oil consumption, have a high level of safety to ensure smooth sailing whilst still being simple to use for the crew.

HJ Smartlube 4.0, is patent protected.

Advantages & your potential

The system ​has introduced new advantages not seen before. 

• Reduce your cylinder lube oil consumptions to levels below anything seen before - no lubricator is present.

• Introducing new intelligent algorithms.

• Less components installed.

• Improve your cylinder condition to the highest possible level.

• Extended life-time of parts associated with lubrication oil, from lower deposit build up and less wear.

• Simplified system design.

• User friendly.

• Enable your fleet to cope with any future lubrication scenario.

• Accurately time and place cylinder lube oil for a perfect cylinder condition.

• Give you complete endless control of when & where cylinder oil is injected and how much oil is injected.

• Perfectly suited for the 2020 S Cap, whether using LSFO or Scrubbers.

• The ability to respond to bad liner conditions.

• Reduced total cost of ownership.

Purpose of the system

Endless possibilities for regulation and injection are present for the HJ Smartlube 4.0 lubrication system.

Based on the well known principle of load dependent feed rate regulation, we have introduced methods for revolutionary control of cylinder liner conditions.

These new control methods, enable the worlds fleet to reach new levels of cleanliness, reduced feed rate and and reduced liner wear rate, providing the best cylinder condition available. 

Simplified system

HJ Smartlube 4.0 operates without a lubricator through a single high pressure cylinder lube oil line.

By supplying high pressure oil to all lube points simultaneously, the ability to inject lube oil has been moved up-stream into the cylinder lubricator injection valves. The valve, is now able to open and close the flow of oil according to the specific operation pattern chosen.

The system can use two methods for lube oil injection

• The patented Swirl Injection Principle, whereby lube oil is injected into the swirl creating an optimum utilization of the injected cylinder oil and a uniform oil film on the upper liner wall of the cylinder.

• Piston ring injection, where the detergency of the oil will function as cleaning.

The ability to choose when and where to inject lube oil is combined with the ability to inject multiple time per engine revolution.

This enables the lubrication system to inject via the SIP principle and into the piston ring pack on the up or down stroke - all during the same engine revolution. 

Introducing new algorithms

With HJ Smartlube 4.0 we have introduced revoltionizing new regulation algorithms

• Multi-timing

• Automatic Cleaning Sequence

• Delta-timing

These new algorithms are specifically designed for IMO 2020 S Cap operation.

Multi-timing

Multi-timing is the concept of injecting fresh cylinder oil into a cylinder at multiple time each engine revolution.

The system supports multiple injections of up to four times per revolution. It is therefore possible to divide the total quantity into certain distribution keys.

The total volume of the distribution keys add up the current feed rate, thus allowing the system keep the feed rate very low.

By using Multi-timing the system ensures that cylinder oil is introduced exactly where it is needed at each engine revolution. With control of placement and injection, optimum cylinder lubrication is achievable.

The typical injection placements of interest are:

• According to Swirl Injection Principle (SIP)

• Ring pack lubrication of compression stroke

• Ring pack lubrication of combustion stroke

When injecting according to SIP during the compression stroke, the window is relatively large when comparing with ring pack lubrication. A timing precision and injection duration, which HJ Smartlube 4.0 enables.

An example of distribution keys can be given as below.

The feed rate will be set to 0.55 g/kWh with the below distribution keys. 

• Multi-timing example

• Multi-timing example for HSFO (>0.5%)

• Multi-timing example for VLSFO (<0.5%)

Automatic Cleaning Sequence

Operation on low or very low feed rates means that certain advantages and functions of the cylinder oil may not perform as intended.

Cleanliness of the cylinder liner, piston and piston rings will become an issue when realizing low cylinder oil feed rates, especially when using low Base Number (BN) cylinder oils.

When lowering the BN, the detergency of the cylinder oil will also be lowered. This compromises the cylinder oils ability to clean combustion residue and wear particles of the cylinder liner, piston and piston rings.

The detergency of cylinder lube oil is not needed continuously, whereby the Automatic Cleaning Sequence can achieve good results with intermittent cleaning.

Periodically increasing the cylinder oil feed rate to introduce cleaning, will ensure low feed rates with positive results on cylinder condition.

Multiple intervals can be set up with various durations.

When injecting according to SIP during the compression stroke, the window is relatively large when comparing with ring pack lubrication.

Typically when cleaning challenges arise, vessels may not be able to acquire a lower feed rate than i.e. 0.65 g/kWh. By using the Automatic Cleaning Sequence the feed rate can be reduced to 0.55 g/kWh during normal operation and while cleaning, the feed rate will be increased to 0.90 g/kWh for two half hour cycles every 24 hours. This produces and average feed rate of 0.56 g/kWh.

• Automatic Cleaning Cycle

Delta-timing

Delta-timing combines multi-timing and the Automatic Cleaning Sequence, providing the ultimate flexibility.

The option of changing quantity and distribution key at each engine revolution is thus possible. By using Delta-timing, the system will ensure overall optimal distribution of the cylinder lubrication oil. The full and automated control of oil distribution and quantity enables this lower oil feed rate with:

• Optimal top liner lubrication

• Optimal sulphuric acid neutralisation (for HSFO)

• Optimal ring pack lubrication

• Optimal piston ring cleaning

The Delta-timing algorithm can be set to change according to fuel oil sulphur level as well as normal engine operating parameters. This results in the Delta-timing algorithm allowing any quantity and distribution key to be used. 

If a vessel running on HSFO is not able to reduce feed rate below 0.65 g/kWh, the Delta-timing algorithm is applicable. A low feed rate of 0.504 g/kWh may be realized when combining the distribution keys of Multi-timing and the washing of the Automatic Cleaning Sequence. In this example, it is possible to reduce the feed rate by combing the two algorithms into the Delta-timing algorithm. Please see below figure for an illustrative example of the distribution keys as well as the quantity for operation on HSFO.

When running on VLSFO the feed rate can be reduced even further from 0.65 g/kWh, to 0.459 g/ kWh. This is due to the lower sulphur % of the FO, with less BN needed for neutralization. Please see below figure for an illustrative example of the distribution keys as well as the quantity for operation on VLSFO. 

The HJ Smartlube 4.0 system consists of considerably less components compared to other lubrication systems. This means that the cost of maintenance is less than that of other systems. 

Hans Jensen Lubricators recommends that the system is continuously controlled for leakages, and that you perform an ongoing control of the system, to ensure that it functions as expected.

Overall, the HJ Smartlube 4.0 system has no fixed maintenance intervals. However, there are components like the injection valve, which we recommend a service interval between 12.000 - 15.000 running hours. 

In general, it is recommended that Hans Jensen Lubricators is contacted every 5 years, as a minimum, to discuss the need for service on the system.