The new moisture-in-oil sensor from IST AG – ideal for continuous monitoring of water content in industrial oils

The new Moisture-in-Oil sensor from IST AG is a ready-to-use, fully calibrated digital humidity and temperature module.

Oil is the life elixir of many industrial plants and machines. It is used for cooling, lubricating, insulating, and transmitting power. To operate a gearbox, transformer, or industrial plant safely and stably over a long period, it is often necessary to monitor the properties of the lubricants with the help of sensors.

For such monitoring functions, IST AG has developed the new Moisture-in-Oil Sensor. This is a compact, digital humidity and temperature module (RH/T) that measures the relative saturation level of water in %RH (water activity aw in %) in oils and fuels. This measurement method has a significant advantage over measuring the absolute water content (in ppm H2O), as it always reflects the current condition and performance capability of the oil.

Every lubricant ages, which occurs through degradation, additive breakdown, and contamination. Over time, aging changes the oil's ability to absorb water, and the performance of the lubricant decreases – which in the worst case can lead to machine failures and costly repairs. In the context of preventive maintenance, continuous monitoring of the current water absorption capacity of the oil becomes increasingly important.

To ensure safe plant operation, such monitoring is applied in industrial areas where maintenance and machine downtime are planned. Examples of moisture-sensitive systems include ship engines and their gearboxes in mobility, commercial vehicles, transformers in rail vehicles, as well as wind turbines and their generators in energy technology. In industry, moisture monitoring can be used in large-volume oil reservoirs, in large drilling and paper machines, as well as in smaller systems such as mobile oil filtration units.

With its robust and compact stainless steel screw housing, the new Moisture-in-Oil Sensor is ideal for use in an industrial environment. Through a universal digital electronic interface (I2C), the sensor can be easily integrated into various measurement and monitoring systems. The sensor is supplied temperature-compensated and calibrated, and additionally, an evaluation test board with analog (0-10V) outputs is available for testing purposes. Customer orientation is a practiced philosophy at IST AG, which is why IST AG also offers application-specific customization and calibration solutions for this sensor.

Technical Features:

– Continuous monitoring of temperature and water saturation level in oil
– Operating ranges: 0 to 100 % RH; -40 to 120 °C
– Reproducibility: ±0.2 % RH; ±0.1 °C
– Accuracy: ±3 % RH; ±0.2 °C
– Housing: Stainless steel 1.4571, M14 x 1.5 mm thread
– Interface: Digital I2C bus; 0.5 m cable