A lubrication system commonly used in industrial plants is the pressure system. In this system, a pump on a machine carries the lubricant to all of the bearing surfaces at a constant rate and quantity.

There are numerous other systems of lubrication and a considerable number of lubricants available for any given set of operating conditions. Modern industry pays greater attention to the use of the proper lubricants than at previous time because of the increased speeds, pressures, and operating demands placed on equipment and devices.

Although one of the main purposes of lubrication is reduce friction, any substance-liquid , solid , or gaseous-capable of controlling friction and wear between sliding surfaces can be classed as a lubricant.

  Varieties of lubrication

Unlubricated sliding. Metals that have been carefully treated to remove all foreign materials seize and weld to one another when slid together. In the absence of such a high degree of cleanliness, adsorbed gases, water vapor ,oxides, and contaminants reduce frictio9n and the tendency to seize but usually result in severe wear; this is called “unlubricated ”or dry sliding.

Fluid-film lubrication. Interposing a fluid film that completely separates the sliding surfaces results in fluid-film lubrication. The fluid may be introduced intentionally as the oil in the main bearing of an automobile, or unintentionally, as in the case of water between a smooth tuber tire and a wet pavement. Although the fluid is usually a liquid such as oil, water, and a wide range of other materials, it may also be a gas. The gas most commonly employed is air.

Boundary lubrication. A condition that lies between unlubricated sliding and fluid-film lubrication is referred to as boundary lubrication, also defined as that condition of lubrication in which the friction between surfaces is determined by the properties of the surfaces and properties of the lubricant other than viscosity. Boundary lubrication encompasses a significant portion of lubrication phenomena and commonly occurs during the starting and stopping off machines.

Solid lubrication. Solid such as graphite and molybdenum disulfide are widely used when normal lubricants do not possess sufficient resistance to load or temperature extremes. But lubricants need not take only such familiar forms as fats, powders, and gases; even some metals commonly serve as sliding surfaces in some sophisticated machines.

    Function of lubricants

Although a lubricant primarily controls friction and ordinarily does perform numerous other functions, which vary with the application and usually are interrelated .

Friction control. The amount and character of the lubricant made available to sliding surfaces have a profound effect upon the friction that is encountered. For example, disregarding such related factors as heat and wear but considering friction alone between the same surfaces with on lubricant. Under fluid-film conditions, friction is encountered. In a great range of viscosities and thus can satisfy a broad spectrum of functional requirements. Under boundary lubrication conditions , the effect of viscosity on friction becomes less significant than the chemical nature of the lubricant.

Wear control. wear occurs on lubricated surfaces by abrasion, corrosion ,and solid-to-solid contact wear by providing a film that increases the distance between the sliding surfaces ,thereby lessening the damage by abrasive contaminants and surface asperities.

Temperature control. Lubricants assist in controlling corrosion of the surfaces themselves is twofold. When machinery is idle, the lubricant acts as a preservative. When machinery is in use, the lubricant controls corrosion by coating lubricated parts with a protective film that may contain additives to neutralize corrosive materials. The ability of a lubricant to control corrosion is directly relatly to the thickness of the lubricant film remaining on the metal surfaces and the chermical composition of the lubricant.