Automatic Viscometers

Maximum throughput and ease of use with very low sample and solvent consumption

The latest generation of new S-flow builds on the strong foundation of its predecessors to offer the ultimate in automatic viscosity testing of Newtonian samples such as petroleum products. The system offers all the tried and tested advantages of a Houillon-type tube design such as short process times, small sample volume and low solvent consumption, but now also includes an optional autosampler to allow for fully unattended operation. All controlled from a central user interface that takes care of result storage, autosampler control, VI calculations and much more. It complies fully with ASTM D7279 and as such, provides full correlation to ASTM D445. It is the ideal system for used oil analysis labs that need to test a wide range of lubricant viscosities.

The new S-flow IV⁺ consists of a 2 bath system with 2 tubes in each bath, providing a total of 4 tubes. The baths were designed to work independently, making it possible to use both baths at the same temperature, or at different temperature, ranging from 20°C to 120°C. Other options include dual solvent cleaning and integrated duplo testing which obtains 2 flow time determinations with only 1 sample injection.

All measurement parameters, such as warmup times and cleaning parameters can be set through the high resolution 12” touchscreen or with optional PC software. The diagnostic system alerts the operator to possible issues such as empty solvent supply tanks, full waste bottles and other potential issues. The optional auto-sampler is fully modular and in-field upgradeable, meaning you can purchase the analyser first and then upgrade to auto-sampling when the need arises.

* For temperatures around ambient, an external chiller is required
** Measurements per hour; depends on viscosity, tube, temperature and solvents 

Optional accessories & upgrades

Following items are optional accessories and upgrades to the instrument.

Dual solvent cleaning

A suitable solvent used for cleaning should have the following two main characteristics:

•  It should be able to dissolve the sample that was tested, i.e. clean the tube completely
•  It should evaporate quickly enough at the bath temperature so that the tube is fully dry after cleaning

If the solvent used does have the ability to dissolve the sample, but does not evaporate quickly enough, a second solvent can be used to rinse out the first solvent, as well as dry the tube. Usually, low boiling solvents are used for this purpose, such as Acetone or MEK. 

Cooling circulator

For measurements close to ambient (± 8°C), an additional cooling circulator is required to create sufficient offset for the temperature control unit. Each bath is fitted with a cooling spiral, to which an external cooling circulator can be easily connected. Complete with tubing and fittings.

  Single                                    Duplo

Duplo measurement tubes

The optional duplo measurement configuration adds another array of optical detections to the instrument, bringing the total number of detection points to three per tube instead of two.  Together with adapted S-flow IV tubes, which are fitted with two measuring trajectories, this enables the S-flow IV⁺ to perform duplo measurements with a single sample injection, increasing productivity, saving even more on solvent consumption and run time.

Compressor

Omnitek S-flow IV⁺ operate on clean and dry 5 bar @ 5 l/min of compressed air. A suitable compressor can be supply from Omnitek if no compressed air is available. 

Positive – displacement pipette

Air-displacement pipette is supplied with S-flow IV⁺ as a standard. It is recommended to use positive displacement pipette especially at higher viscosities (300 mm²/s and above) to avoid operator errors and for more accurate and repeatable injections.  

Software

Omnitek S-flow IV⁺ utilizes advanced and easy to use multi-lingual software, it can be operated directly from the touchscreen, and both calibration and viscosity measurements can be performed without PC or software. However, to have more control, dedicated optional software is available, which can be used to control multiple systems.

PC

A PC system can be sourced locally or through Omnitek. Omnitek supplies the latest model entry level laptop or, if required, desktop. When sourcing locally, make sure the operating system is Windows 7 or later and that the PC/Laptop has 1 free USB port per instrument. 

Printer

Any kind of printer can be used if instrument is connected to a PC via software. A printer can be sourced locally or through Omnitek. Omnitek supplies the latest model entry level laser printer.

Autosampler operation

Omnitek offers autosampler operation for S-flow IV⁺. It is ideal for customers that run large numbers of samples and want to automate their sampling process. As each laboratory will have its own requirements, automation is a highly customized product which requires elaborate preparation. The autosampler stands out for being a modular high speed autosampler, it can be in-field upgradeable, services up to 2 S-flow IV⁺ instruments (8 tubes), processes 25-40 samples per hour and it is customizable to allow different sample cups and racks.

Please contact us for specific solutions to your sampling needs. 

Thermometers

The customer should have a DCT shaft diameter < 3mm. The recommended thermometers that can be supplied are the modern digital contact thermometers (DCT), used at multiple temperatures

Features

• Applicable for fuels, base oils, formulated oils, and petroleum products as well as water-based fluids
• Compliant with requirements for ASTM D7279, ASTM 2270 and correlation to ASTM D445
• High throughput: up to 80 samples per hour under ideal operation conditions
• Very easy to use and maintain
• Small sample volume: 0.3 – 1.0 ml
• Low solvent consumption: 2 – 3 ml per sample.
• Extremely accurate temperature control and flow-time measurement independent of fluid type
• Automatic calibration of the optic amplifiers
• Automatic flow time measurement with ultraprecise meniscus detection
• Fully automatic cleaning and drying
• Fast & easy tube replacement (tubes are not connected to optical sensors)
• No need to drain bath during tube replacement.
• Single or dual solvent injection (optional)
• Measurement at 2 temperatures in 1 system simultaneously
• Integrated VI calculations
• Stand-alone unit. No PC required.
• Chemically resistant to allow for all common solvents
• Bath scheduler to turn baths on/off on preset times
• Bath temperature graphs on screen
• Bath backlight. It improves visibility of viscometer tubes and sensors
• User Access Control
• Duplo measurement capability
• Integrated back flushing
• Optional autosampler

This product is compliant with the following test methods:

•  ASTM D7279 
•  ASTM D2270

This product is correlating with the following test method:

•  ASTM D445

For other fluids / solutions please send your inquire

S-flow IV⁺ brochure PDF