Oemeta

DIN Standards for Users of Cooling Lubricants

In the year 1918 the first DIN standard for "taper pins" appeared. Since then, thousands of standards have been published that make daily life at work and at leisure easier and, above all, safer for all of us.

The Deutsche Institut für Normung (German Institute for Standardisation) is a sort of round table for all parties interested in standards. The tasks of the DIN are to organise and inform, the actual standardisation work is carried out by independent specialists from all participating organisations.
The DIN, a registered association, funded by private industry and on contract to the German Government is the standardisation body for European and international standardisation activities.

Property and Specification Standards for Lubricants

For the area of metal working fluids there are currently 3 standards which deal with the specifications or the classification of the different types of lubricants:

• DIN 51385 – lubricants, terms, June 1991
• DIN 51520 - lubricants, metal working fluids, straight cutting oils (non aqueous fluids) SN Minimum specifications, October 1995
• DIN 51521 – lubricants, metal working fluids, Water mix metal working fluids SE, Specifications, March 1999

Whereas DIN 51385 defines the term lubricant and divides them into fundamentally different types of product, the categories in DIN 51385 are further differentiated in DIN 51520 and 51521. Furthermore, in both specification standards there can be found a table of the properties it is necessary to be acquainted with to judge the technical suitability of a lubricant.
All three standards are being reworked at the moment to bring them up to the current state of technology. To do this, specialists from the lubricant field, lubricant users, machine tools and component manufacturers, professional associations and interested societies meet to form amendment working parties. It is expected that the reworked DIN 51520 and DIN 51521 will be published in 2008. For DIN 51385 a publication date has not yet been announced.

Oemeta Standardisation work

The Oemeta Chemische Werke GmbH has always seen it as one of its essential duties to participate in committees and working parties covering all aspects of lubricants.
Employees of Oemeta chair the working parties of the three specification/definition standards mentioned and also for lubricants testing methods:

• DIN 51360-1 – “Herbert Corrosion Test“, August 1985
• DIN 51360-2 – “Chip/filter paper corrosion test“, July 1981
• DIN 51367 – “Stability in hard water”, August 1991
• DIN 51368 – “Determination of fraction separated by hydrochloric acid”, Nov. 1990

Being actively involved in the drawing up of the wording of laws, guidelines and standards improves their practical applicability and ensures Oemeta and its customers are at the forefront with the know-how which will make dealing with the lubricant product noticeably easier.

Further information on the subject can be found at www2.din.de