Do you know the approximate percentage of sulfur in motor oil?

Thanks in advance for your help,

Greg

Hmmm. this depends a bit on the brand (origin base-oils) and quality (additive package) of oil your using. Do you know an example?

I just need an approximate sulfur content range.

In Europe, the Sulfated ash content of most oils lies between 1,0 - 1,3%.

This implies the total sulfur content from additives and base oils. Is that detailed enough for you?

Exactly what I was looking for. Thanks for your help.

Gotta reply to this one even though the thread is a bit old. Sulfated ash measures the metal content of the oil. The sulfur here comes from the sulfuric acid used during the sulfated ash analysis - not from the oil.

Most sulfur in an oil comes from the ZDP, some comes from the oil itself, and some comes from the detergent or other components. In general, the higher the ZDP level, the higher the sulfur.

That said, the ballpark range for %S is ~0.3 to 0.8%.

Elisa

Excellent information - thank you. Would diesel engine oil contain a similar amount? Also, is there an approximate correlation between how much zinc is in the sample and the amount of sulfur?

Thanks again,

Greg

European ACEA oil sequences limits the content of sulphur to less than 0,2-0,3% for some of the specifications.