Supply of a reference oil for testing dynamic or kinematic viscosity

Proposed calibration services

Supply of a reference oil for testing kinematic viscosity

• Calibration at temperatures ranging from 20° to 70°C
• Calibration at temperatures of above 70°C and up to 150°C
• Calibration at temperatures of below 20°C and down to -40°C
• Determination of the viscosity of a heavy fuel oil, a crude oil, a liquid with viscosity > 100,000 mm²/s.

Supply of a reference oil for testing dynamic viscosity

• Calibration at temperatures ranging from 20° to 70°C
• Calibration at temperatures of below 20°C and down to 10°C.

Accreditation details

These services are provided under COFRAC Accreditation No. 2-43 

List of sites and scopes available on www.cofrac.fr

Additional services

The oils are delivered in 500-ml, colored glass flasks with an indication of the kinematic viscosity value expressed in mm²/s for the requested calibration temperature(s). The oils must be conserved in their original flask, protected from both heat and light.

Kinematic viscosity

Kinematic viscosity is determined by using calibrated capillary viscometers. This calibration step may be performed at between -40° and +150°C.
The relative uncertainty (k=2) depends on the actual kinematic viscosity range:

• 0.9 to 80 mm²/s: 0.6%
• 80 to 600 mm²/s: 0.8%
• 600 to 41,000 mm²/s: 1.2%
• 41,000 to 700,000 mm²/s: 2.0%

Dynamic viscosity

To calculate the dynamic viscosity of a fluid, a determination of the fluid mass density relies on the pycnometric method. The calibration step may be performed at between 10° and 70°C.
Dynamic viscosity is the product of kinematic viscosity and the mass density of the oil.
The relative uncertainty (k=2) depends on the actual dynamic viscosity range:

• 0.7 to 70 mPa.s: 0.6%
• 70 to 36,000 mPa.s: 1.2%
• 36,000 to 670,000 mPa.s: 2.0%