Determination of the carcinogenic potential of lubricant base oil using near infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics

In the present study, near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy and chemometrics techniques have been combined to predict the carcinogenic potential of lubricant base oils. Principal component analysis was used to select the relevant wavelengths of the NIR spectra and principal component regression was employed to develop linear models to predict the total polyaromatic assay (IP 346) and the mutagenicity index (ASTM E1687/95) of lubricant oil samples. The good correlation between NIR normalised spectra (r=0.995; RMSEP=0.4%) and the total polyaromatic assay is discussed. It was concluded that the combination of both techniques could be used for the on-line determination of the carcinogenic potential of lubricant oils.