Removing Iron & Metal Contamination from Oil, Fuel and Process Liquids
Iron and ferromagnetic contamination is removed from oil, fuel and process liquids using an inline magnetic filter or magnetic drum separator, which pull ferrous particles down to 10 microns out of a flowing stream without affecting the liquid itself. Contamination like this picks up from wear, corrosion, and the raw material itself — often invisible until it's damaging a pump, clogging a line, or showing up in a customer's quality test. Below is how PML's customers have solved it, and which equipment fits which situation.
Why It Matters
- Pump and equipment damage — fine iron particles wear and clog pumps, valves and seals over time, driving up maintenance and replacement costs.
- Product quality and rejection risk — contamination that reaches the finished product can fail quality checks or damage a customer's own equipment downstream.
- Process downtime — contamination-related failures mean unplanned stops, especially costly on continuous or high-pressure lines.
Which Equipment Fits Your Line
Magnetic Filter — an inline pipeline filter for oils, fuels, coolants, chemicals and process liquids, built to pull ferrous particles down to 10 microns out of a flowing stream. Available in manual or self-cleaning models, standard up to 80°C/5 kg/cm², and custom-engineered for higher pressure or temperature (PML has built units rated to 200°C and 25 kg/cm², and high-pressure units generating over 12,500 Gauss for offshore extraction). Food and pharma-grade PTFE/ETFE coating options are available.
Magnetic Drum Separator — for thicker slurries and semi-fluid material rather than free-flowing liquid, where a rotating self-cleaning drum handles continuous throughput without manual intervention.
Where This Has Already Worked
PCBL Limited
- Problem
- PCBL produces fine carbon powder from recycled mineral oil and was seeing final product degradation from iron particle contamination, under extreme operating conditions that ruled out standard filter designs.
- Solution
- PML engineered a specially customised magnetic filter built to withstand the temperature and pressure.
- Result
- The custom filter successfully isolated and removed the iron particles, significantly elevating the customer's final product quality. See the full Magnetic Filter case studies →
Shapoorji Pallonji Energy Private Limited
- Problem
- At Shapoorji Pallonji's Kakinada site, crude oil is extracted from the sea using heavy pumps. Fine iron and ferromagnetic particles were clogging and damaging the pumps.
- Solution
- PML designed a high-pressure magnetic filter around a magnetic circuit generating over 12,500 Gauss, and supplied three units to the site.
- Result
- The filters capture 99% of iron and ferromagnetic particles before they reach the pumps, cutting maintenance costs and improving crude oil quality. See the full Magnetic Filter case studies →
Frequently Asked Questions
Can magnetic separation handle high-pressure or high-temperature oil lines?
Yes — standard units run up to 80°C and 5 kg/cm², and PML custom-engineers units for more demanding conditions, including installations rated to 200°C and 25 kg/cm², and high-pressure offshore units.
What's the smallest iron particle size this can remove from a liquid?
Down to 10 microns at standard Gauss ratings, with high-intensity custom units capturing finer contamination in demanding applications.
Does this work on recycled or used oil, not just virgin product?
Yes — PML has built custom filters specifically for recycled mineral oil processing, where contamination levels and operating conditions are often more demanding than virgin oil lines.
Do I need a custom design, or does a standard filter work?
Most oil and liquid lines are covered by PML's standard range. Custom engineering is typically needed for extreme temperature, pressure, or continuous high-volume operations — tell us your conditions and we'll size the right unit.
Have a liquid line with iron contamination you need to solve? Enquire now and our engineering team will size the right solution.