$19.

97

LIBRARY
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?
Vol.1

A compendium of problems with solutions collected

from Hydraulics & Pneumatics

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Copyright © 2017 by Penton Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
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 Vol.1

Learn Fluid Power CHALLENGES:

While Testing Your Valve malfunctions after
pachyderm problem.............. 2
Knowledge
ONE OF THE BEST WAYS of learn-
Defects at the steel
ing is from your mistakes. An even mill are a problem................. 3
better way is to learn from someone
else’s mistakes or oversights. That’s
exactly our intention with this first Regen circuit crashes
volume of “Troubleshooting Chal- roll changing system............. 4
lenge” entries from the pages of
Hydraulics & Pneumatics. Most of
these situations are real-world exam- Snow plow truck
ples encountered by Robert Sheaf Jr., Sheaf blowing hoses........................ 5
contributing technical expert to H&P.

Bob is the founder and president of CFC Industrial Train- Mine shaft pump
ing, Fairfield, Ohio, which provides technical training, switching to stand-by............ 6
consulting, and field services to industries using fluid pow-
er and electrical technology. He has earned more than
ten different certifications from the International Fluid
Power Society and has worked for decades in the hydrau-
NASA loading boom
lics industry. swinging out of control.......... 7

Each of these challenges gives a brief description of an

application, describes the situation and the hydraulic sys-
tem, then presents a problem. Of course, some problems
are harder to solve than others, so if you’re stumped, just
click to learn how Bob and his extended network of fluid
power experts solved the problem. •
Clamping system
losing pressure...................... 8
SOLUTIONS................. 9, 10, 11

1 ☞ GO TO HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

Valve malfunctions
after pachyderm problem

A
By Robert J. Sheaf, Jr.
Challengefamous
Troubleshooting

zoo had sev-

eral hydraulic sys- Solenoid A
t e m s t h at op e n e d
and closed overhead P A
gates in the elephant and large cat com-
pounds. An elephant reached through a T B
fence and around the corner of its com-
pound building with its trunk and pulled
a D03 valve stack off of a steel sub-plate Solenoid B
mounted on a steel stand. The zoo keep-
ers found the various modules and valve
in the water trough after spotting an oil Locking valve
slick floating on top of the water. Raise and
Maintenance was called and found lower speed
that the valve’s 10-24 mounting bolts controls
broke off close to the sub-plate but they
did not find damage to the base. They Counterbalance
were able to remove the broken bolts and valve

ions
found all the parts. (The parts must not
have tasted like peanuts!) The modules
seemed to be reusable but, importantly,

rm
the D03 directional valve was damaged
and needed replacement along with the
stacking bolts.
The directional valve was a 3-posi-
tion, float-center, solenoid-operated
D03 size with finger operated manual
overrides. The manufacturer offers an Load
option that extends the manual operator,
covers them with a flexible waterproof
boot, and can easily be shifted with a This circuit schematic shows the operation of the D03 valve, which could not be manually

A famous
finger.zoo

gates to
inbe
and
hadvalve
A new several
installed.
theworking
elephantfineand
andhydraulic
tems that opened and closed overhead
dered Everything
large cat
electrically,
sys-
bolt kit was or- shifted. The counterbalance valve is set as low as possible to keep cylinder motion smooth and
seemed
butcom-
the valve could not be shifted same problem with the overrides. It didn’t make sense that it
pounds. An elephant reached through a
manually. would work electrically but not with the manual overrides. The
fence and around the corner of its com-
They returned the valve for warranty repair, and the dis- overrides could not be moved or shifted manually. What should
pound building with its trunk and pulled
tributor sent them a temporary
a D03 valve stack off of a steel sub-plate
manual overrides. Much to their Need training help?
replacement
surprise,
that
the
did not
warranty
have
claim
they do next? Can you figure out the problem?

mounted
was on a steel
denied. They stand.
were The zoovalve
told the keep-worked fine and no prob-
ers found the various modules and valve
lem could be found. Get industrial training and troubleshooting from
in the water trough after spotting an oil
The report indicated that the valve and manual one of the most experienced and respected
overrides
slick floating on top of the water.
worked well. They reinstalled the valve and experienced the names in the industry
Maintenance was called and found that
the valve’s 10-24 mounting bolts broke n Hydraulic ☞ FIND THE ANSWER! Go to page 9 to learn the solution.
off close to the sub-plate but they did not n Pneumatic
find damage to the base. They were able
n Electrical
to remove the broken bolts and found all 2 ☞ GO TO HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
the parts. (The parts must not have tasted n Mechanical
like peanuts!) The modules seemed to be
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

Defects at the steel mill are a problem

A
By Robert J. Sheaf, Jr.
steel processing plant uncoils
Challenge
Troubleshooting

8-ft wide stainless steel coil

stock and runs it through a pol-
ishing machine. It prepares the
steel for use by manufacturers of appliances, Self-relieving, pressure-reducing
such as refrigerators. The processing plant proportional pressure valve
rewinds the finished product, adds protec-
tive paper between the coils, then ships them
to the customer.
The steel processor upgraded its 1980 vin-

Defects at the
tage mill late last year. Part of the upgrade was
to replace an old hydraulic system with pro-
Holding
valve Polishing head
brushes

steel mill are

portional control and state-of-the-art tech-
nology for polishing flat steel stock. Once the
processor was up and running, a few prob-

a problem
lems cropped up, most of which were solved
with minor fixes — except for one. The hy- Stainless steel
draulic schematic shows the polishing circuit
believed to be causing reject problems when The circuit shows a polisher machine at a steel processing plant, where reject problems

A steel processing plant uncoils also provided a counterbalance force, the adjustment made the necessary
a short jolt or bump was experienced during were becoming a problem.
8-ft wide stainless steel coil which acted against the polisher heads’ correction without quality problems.
the continuous positioning of the mechani-
stock and runs it through a polish- weight, thus applying theMaintenance correct force Other times, however, a pressure
cally driven polishing heads. people replaced the proportional valve with a
ing machine. It prepares the steel needed for producing the correct finish bump seemed to create a defect in the
The circuit design incorporated a single cylinder with a new one, but that had no effect. They could not find any me-
forself-relieving,
use by manufacturers of appli- on the steel. coil. They noticed it usually occurred
pressure-reducing proportional valve to pro- chanical binding, so they called in an electrical engineer. He
ances, such as refrigerators. The When the operators determined that when their adjustment added more
vide pressure to the rod side of a single-acting cylinder. When felt it was a hydraulic problem because the electrical signal to
processing plant rewinds the fin- the surface finish of the coiled steel polisher head force against the coil
operators wanted the cylinder to fully retract, they provided the valve was clean and consistent in both the increasing and
ished product, adds protective pa- called for higher
a maximum signal to the valve, producing enough pressure decreasing mode.
or lower pressure stock.
per between the coils, then ships on the
to raise the piston rod. When they wanted the piston rod to
polishing heads, they made a Maintenance people replaced the
The problem did not seem to occur with increasing pressure
them to the customer. slight adjustment to the proportional proportional valve with a new one,
extend, they sent a signal to the proportional valve to lower the but reared its ugly head when pressure decreased. The operator
The steel processor upgraded its signal to the valve. About half the time but that had no effect. They could not
rod-end pressure by allowing the weight of the polishing heads turned the problem back over to the machine repair group, which
1980 vintage mill late last year. Part of
to extend the cylinder. The proportional signal also provided a did not know what to do next. Do you?
thecounterbalance
upgrade was to replace an old hy-
draulic system with proportional con- Mobile
force, which acted against the Equipment Training Challenges
polisher heads’
weight, thus applying the correct force needed for producing
troltheand state-of-the-art technology for
correct finish on the steel.
Individuals that work on mobile equipment
polishing flat steel stock. Once the pro- often require hydraulic and electrical knowledge
When the operators determined that the surface finish of
cessor was up and running, a few prob- beyond that necessary for maintaining equip-
the coiled steel called for higher or lower pressure on the pol-
lems cropped up, most of which were ment in fixed factory settings.
ishing heads, they made a slight adjustment to the proportional
solved with minor fixes — except for Industries such as energy, mining, construc-
signal to the valve. About half the time the adjustment made
one. The hydraulic schematic shows tion, rail, waste management, agriculture, and
the necessary correction without quality problems. Other
thetimes,
polishing circuit believed to be oil and gas are loaded with mobile equipment.
however, a pressure bump seemed to create a defect in
causing reject problems when a short If you are faced with finding professional train-
the coil. They noticed it usually occurred when their adjust-
joltment
or bump was experienced during ing for your fleet or unique mobile equipment, CFC Solar may be able to help. CFC-So-
added more polisher head force against the coil stock.
the continuous positioning of the me- lar is one of the most respected names in the mobile industrial training market with a
chanically driven polishing heads. history of developing training programs that teachGoindividuals
to page 9how to maintain today’s
The circuit design incorporated a
☞ FIND THE ANSWER! to learn the solution.
technically advanced mobile equipment. In addition to product specific training, CFC-
single cylinder with a self-relieving, Solar has standard training classes developed for the mobile industrial industry that include:
pressure-reducing proportional valve
to provide pressure to the rod side of
3 ☞ GO TO •HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
Level 1 Mobile Hydraulics – In Depth Fundamentals
a single-acting cylinder. When opera- • Level 2 Mobile Hydraulics – Advanced Maintenance
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

Regen circuit crashes

roll changing system
Challenge
By Robert J. Sheaf, Jr.
Troubleshooting

A
steel mill had a roll changer cir-
cuit consisting of two 12-in. bore,
8½-in. rod, 96-in. stroke cylinders.
These cylinders were mounted to 12 in. bone cylinders
a hinged deck plate that had another cylinder
lifting and lowering it. To change a roll, the deck
plate would raise to lift the two 12 in. bore cyl- Load
Regen circuit
inders. These cylinders would extend, pushing a
worn roll out the other side of the mill. A crane

crashes roll
would remove it and place another new roll in its
place. The two 12-in. bore cylinders would then

changing
retract, pulling the roll stand into position.
A couple of improvements were added over
the years to the same hydraulic power unit that

system
supplied power to the two cylinders. During
certain sequences, the additional oil needed for
the improvements would lower the oil level in
Regenerative circuit

the reservoir to the point that pump-motors

Asteel mill had a roll changer circuit

mounted on top would start to aerate. Mainte-
consisting of two 12-in. bore, 8½-
nance needed to check the unit every day to make
in. rod, 96-in. stroke cylinders. These
LVDT spool feedback
A B

sure the oil level was adequate.

cylinders were mounted to a hinged
They found that during the roll change op-
deck plate that had another cylinder
eration, the pumps seemed to aerate more fre-
P T
lifting and lowering it. To change
quently. One engineer had the idea to convert the
a
roll, the deck plate would raise to lift
two 12-in. bore cylinders to a regenerative circuit
the two 12 in. bore cylinders. These
(see illustration) to reduce the oil volume drawn
cylinders would extend, pushing a
from the reservoir. The mechanical engineer couldn’t figure out why the sys-
worn roll out the other side of the mill.
The existing circuit was controlled by a pilot-operated pro- tem crashed. He had feedback on the valve spool, proximity
A crane would remove it and place an-
portional valve that had position feedback on its main
other new roll in its place. The two 12- Mobile Equipment
spool, switches Training
were still functioning Challenges
in their original locations, and
but not on the pilot spool. The 12-in. bore cylinders used other than the regen circuit, no other changes were made. The
in. bore cylinders would then retract, Individuals that work on mobile equipment
proximity switches to signal their position. The proportional good part was it solved the low oil level aeration problem by
pulling the roll stand into position. often require hydraulic and electrical knowledge
valve was used to control the maximum speed, as well as ac- leaving 59 gal of oil in the tank when using this system.
A couple of improvements were
celeration and deceleration in both directions.
beyond that necessary for maintaining equip-
Based on the information given, what is the source of the
added over the years to the same ment in fixed factory settings.
The circuit was revised to add the regen circuit shown on problem?
hydraulic power unit that supplied Industries such as energy, mining, construc-
the hydraulic circuit. Manually cycling the new circuit showed
power to the two cylinders. During tion, rail, waste management, agriculture,
no evidence of aerated fluid. Once ready, operators switched
certain sequences, the additional oil and oil and gas are loaded with mobile equip-
over to the automatic cycling, which was controlled by a PLC.
needed for the improvements would ment. If you are faced with finding profes-
With no heavy roll on the changer sled, they initiated an auto
lower the oil level in the reservoir to sional training for your fleet or unique mobile equipment, CFC Solar may be able to help.
cycle. The cylinders extended with such a high velocity that
the point that pump-motors mounted CFC-Solar is one of the most respected names in the mobile industrial training market
they broke all their mounting bolts when they bottomed out,
on top would start to
damaging the roll changer system.
aerate. Mainte- with a history of developing training programs that teach individuals how to maintain
nance needed to check the unit every today’s technically advanced mobile equipment. In addition to product specific training,
day to make sure the oil level was ad- CFC-Solar has standard training classes Go
developed
to pagefor
10the mobilethe
industry that include:
equate.
☞ FIND THE ANSWER! to learn solution.

They found that during the roll • Level 1 Mobile Hydraulics – In Depth Fundamentals
change operation, the pumps seemed • Level 2 Mobile Hydraulics – Advanced Maintenance
4 ☞ GO TO HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
• Level 3 Mobile Hydraulics – Design and Sizing
to aerate more frequently. One engi-
neer had the idea to convert the two • Troubleshooting Mobile Systems using Schematics
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

Snow plow truck blowing hoses

A
By Robert J. Sheaf, Jr.
Challenge
Troubleshooting

large snow plow

truck was brought to
Turner Hydraulics in
Carlisle, Pa., the day Air bleed valve Flow control
after a snow storm dumped several
inches of snow on the east coast.
The operator complained about the Outlet
pump pressure line failing and not-
ed that it would be fine if he only Inlet

Snow plow
ran the salt spreader circuit. How-
ever, if he moved any of the plow

truck blowing
circuit cylinders to a bottomed-out Control
position, the pressure hose from spool and
sleeve

hoses
the pump would fail. None of the
other hoses on the truck circuit had
failed; the pump pressure hose was
the only one that did. He tried to
prevent any cylinder that he moved Port B

A l a rg e s n ow p l ow t r u c k w a s
from bottoming out, but he could
brought to Turner Hydraulics in
not always judge its position cor-
Carlisle, Pa., the day after a snow
Control drain
port A
rectly and, consequently,
storm dumped several inches of snow would
(at constant speed)

Pressure
on thecause
east another
coast. The hoseoperator
to fail. com-
compensator Differential
Wh e n Tu r n e r’s
plained about the pump pressure line te ch n i c i an adjustment
adjustment
Flow

failinglooked in thethat
and noted cab itforwould
a service
be man-
fine
ual hoping
if he only ran thetosaltfind a hydraulic
spreader circuit.cir-
cuit, he found three new
However, if he moved any of the plow hoses, four
circuitoldcylinders
ones thatto had failed, and four
a bottomed-out Pressure
5-gal buckets of hydraulic
position, the pressure hose from oil. How-
the Illustration courtesy of Parker Hannifin Corp.
pumpever,wouldno documentation
fail. None of the was other
found.
hoses onThe thetechnician,
truck circuit Mike had failed; crawled under the truck shooting a different problem on his truck and had removed
Armstrong,
and found a Parker
the pump pressure hose was the onlyHannifin load sensing,Worldwide
pressure compen- Workforcethe pump Training
and valveChallenges
stack. Upon doing so, he found hose
sated model PAVC65
one that did. He tried to prevent any piston pump. He also determined that material in one of the directional valve sections. He corrected
the directional valve
cylinder that he moved from bot- bank was equipped with a load sense line the problem, but now
A theyorganization
diverse were having this
with bursting pressure
operations
going down through
toming out, but he could not always the frame to the pump. There were three hose problem. He spread
also geographically
told them thatpresents
when a number
they first started
manual spools that controlled
judge its position correctly and, con- the plow and two proportional up the system of
after challenges
finding in
the keeping
hose employees
material, safe
they heard a
spools controlled by
sequently, would cause another hosethe salt spreader control electronics. Arm- loud “thump,” but and
it operations
did not efficient
return, with
and minimal
they could not find
strong
to fail. assumed the valve bank would have a closed-center anything wrong. downtown. A well trained workforce is
Whencircuit becausetechnician
Turner’s pressure compensated
looked piston pumps require The customer felt the key
thetoproblem
success. was still in the valve bank,
a minimum backpressure
in the cab for a service manual hoping to ensure adequate lubrication. He but Turner Hydraulics
The Futurepretty
was sure is
of Training something
Now! was wrong
also determined that there
to find a hydraulic circuit, he found wasn’t a safety relief anywhere in the with the pump. TheCFC-Solar in conjunction with Hydraulics pump
illustration shown is of the Parker
system.
three new hoses, four old ones that shown in its Catalog HY13-1553/NA,EU,
& Pneumatics page A18.
magazine announces
The operator said the
had failed, and four 5-gal buckets of owner of the truck had been trouble- Any idea what the problem was?
the industrial training standard of the future: Live Internet Training! This training option
hydraulic oil. However, no documen- specifically addresses the challenges faced in today’s marketplace; budget and time
tation was found. ☞FIND THE ANSWER! Go to page 10 to learn the solution.
constraints. Now you can get live training from experts in short durations at economical
The technician, Mike Armstrong, prices!
crawled under the truck and found a Contact us now for a demonstration!
Parker Hannifin load sensing, pressure 5 ☞ GO TOAccredited
HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
Fluid Power Services Provided
compensated model PAVC65 piston
Instructors with Training
pump. He also determined that the
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

Mine shaft pump

switching to stand-by

A
gold mine has an eleva- By Robert J. Sheaf, Jr.
tor that travels approxi- Lift and
Challenge mately 4000 ft down a lower cage
Troubleshooting

deep shaft. The shaft is

a vertical excavation adjacent to the Gate lock Load and eject material
mine’s gold ore body. Shaft haulage is
more economical than truck haulage
at this depth.
The ore from the mine is dumped
down an ore pass (a vertical excava-
tion), where it falls to a collection
level. On the collection level, the ore
is crushed using a cone crusher. The
ore is then moved by conveyor belts to
the shaft to be hoisted to the surface in 1-pint 1000 psi falling
buckets or skips and emptied into bins accumulator pressure
for transport to a mill. precharged
to 1100 psi
One of the hydraulic systems used
on the hoist operates a conveyor motor

Mine shaft
and cylinder circuits as shown in the
drawing. The system needs only one
3µm return
pump running, so the other serves as filter

pump switching
a stand-by pump. Each time the con- 2100 psi 2100 psi
trol system was started, it was set up
to alternate the pumps so they would Water

to stand-by
wear evenly and ensure that the stand- Case drain
by pump did work before the last shut- flow meter
down. If system pressure were to drop
below 1000 psi, the stand-by pump
would be started, and 3 sec later the first manual cycles without a problem. They then started the system,

A gold
pump
travels
mine
wouldhas an elevator
be turned
with theapproximately
off, and an
first pump circuit. 4000 ft
that
alarm would signal a problem only to find that the electrical control circuit switched over to

a verti- theWorldwide
the stand-by pump before a complete auto cycle was finished.
down a deep
During shaft. The
a run, theshaft
alarmis sounded, operating pump Workforce
was Training
What would Challenges
you do next?
cal excavation
shut down,adjacent to the mine’s
and the stand-by pump was started. The mainte-
A diverse organization with operations
gold ore
nancebody. Shaft haulage
supervisor is more
issued a work order to change out the pump
spread geographically presents a number
economical than
with a new truck
one. Thishaulage at this with the system running
was accomplished
of challenges in keeping employees safe
depth.because the three hydraulic lines to each pump were connected
and operations efficient with minimal
Theindependent
ore from the mine
of each is and
other dumpedcould by safely disconnected.
downtown. A well trained workforce is
down anThe orepump
passcase
(a vertical
was filledexcava-
with oil and would be started dur-
the key to success.
tion),ing
where it falls next
the systems’s to a down
collection
time, which happened two days
level.later.
On the collectionbled
Maintenance level, theairore
all the from the pump. When pres- The Future of Training is Now!
is crushed using a cone
sure stabilized, and the crusher. The down, they ran several
pump quieted CFC-Solar in conjunction with Hydraulics
ore is then moved by conveyor belts to & Pneumatics magazine announces
the shaft to be hoisted to the surface in ☞
the industrial training standard ofFIND
the future: Live InternetGo
THE ANSWER! Training.
to pageThis11training
to learnoption
the solution.
buckets or skips and emptied into bins specifically addresses the challenges faced in today’s marketplace; budget and time
for transport to a mill. constraints. Now you can get live training from experts in short durations at economical
One of the hydraulic systems used on prices.
6 ☞ GO TO HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
the hoist operates a conveyor motor and Contact us now for a demonstration!
cylinder circuits as shown in the draw-
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

NASA loading boom

swinging out of control

S
By Robert J. Sheaf, Jr.

Photo, NASA
everal years ago, we were asked to do a five-day
Ball screw
Challenge hydraulics class for NASA. The class included
Troubleshooting

four astronauts, who were scheduled to travel

to the International Space Station, plus several
engineers. While attending the class, they expressed a
great deal of interest in the circuit that operated hori-
zontal movement of the Space Shuttle’s loading boom. Encoder
Apparently, the loading boom was having a problem Servo
when moving and positioning the Hubble Space Tele- controlled
scope and other heavy cargo during previous missions.
Weight is a mjor factor when loading material hydraulic Servovalve
into the Shuttle’s cargo bay for a mission, so hy- motor
draulic servo controlled motors — which drive ball
screws — are used to move and position the boom
when on the ground with gravity. A hydraulic sys-
tem was chosen because it transmits higher power
in a much smaller package than other methods.
However, in the microgravity of space, weight isn’t

NASA loading
a factor, so small electric servomotors engaged the
boom instead of the hydraulic system to unload the
telescope and other cargo. Because energy consump- M

boom swinging
tion is a major concern, this combination of drives
works well.
The hydraulic motor had a hollow shaft and when

out of control
not in use had both ports connected for freewheel-
ing while the dc electric motor would be engaged
and disengaged with a clutch attached to the same
ball screw.
Their problem only manifested itself when using
the hydraulic servomotors. Both systems are con-

S everal by
trolled years
operator
it
ago,handheld
a single we were joystick
to do a five-day hydraulicsboom
an commanded
for NASA. The class included four
lically, would hesitate,
the
then
asked control. When

move, and
Worldwide
class to move hydrau-
overshoot
Workforce Training Challenges
astronauts,
the commandedwho were scheduled
position, to
This caused the boom to A diverse organization with operations
travel to the International Space
oscillate back and forth. The boom has a position spread geographically presents a number
Station, plus several engineers.
feedback sensor, and if the operator worked the of challenges in keeping employees safe
While attending the class, they ex-
joystick just right, he or she could get it to stop oscil- and operations efficient with minimal
pressed a great deal of interest in
lating. downtown. A well trained workforce is
the circuit that operated horizontal
The attached drawing is a simplification of the the key to success.
movement
hydraulic of themotor
servo Spacecircuit.
Shuttle’s The Future of Training is Now!
l o a d i n g b o o m . A p p acould
What do you think r e n t lbe
y, causing
the the problem? CFC-Solar in conjunction with Hydraulics
loading boom was having a prob- & Pneumatics magazine announces
lem when moving and positioning the industrial training standard of the future: Live Internet Training. This training option
the Hubble Space Telescope and specifically addresses the☞ FIND THE
challenges in today’s Go
ANSWER!
faced to page 11
marketplace; to learn
budget the solution.
and time
other heavy cargo during previous constraints. Now you can get live training from experts in short durations at economical
missions. prices.
Weight is a mjor factor when 7 Contact ☞ GOusTOnow for a demonstration!
HYDRAULICSPNEUMATICS.COM
loading material into the Shuttle’s IFPS Accredited Fluid Power Services Provided
cargo bay for a mission, so hy-
 TROUBLESHOOTING Vol.1
CHALLENGE

Clamping system losing pressure

A
steel mill has four identical hydraulic
systems that perform the same function.
Challenge
Troubleshooting

When the cylinders extend to a clamp

position, one system seems to slow down
with a drop in pressure for a short time, and then the Gas precharge
pressure climbs back to minimum pressure needed to 500 psi
do the work. The other three systems stroke quickly
without the pressure dip experienced by the one prob-
lem unit.
Maintenance checked the gas pre-charge on all four
piston accumulators and confirmed they were all close
to 500 psi. They made sure all the accumulator bleed
down valves were open and had drained all the hydraulic
pressure from the systems.
When running and when idle, all four systems would
cycle on and off as you would expect with accumulator

Clamping
unloading circuits as shown in the circuit. When pres-
sure reached 1100 psi, the unloading valve would open
completely, allowing the pump flow to free-flow back to

system losing
Set to unload
tank with very little backpressure. at 1100 psi
When the accumulator’s hydraulic pressure dropped
about 15% to 17%, the unloaded pressure control would

pressure
snap closed. This forced the pump flow to enter the ac-
cumulator circuit until pressure reached 1100 psi, then
the pressure control would unload again. The problem M
circuit seemed to cycle more frequently than the others.

A
same
steel mill has four identical hy-
All four cylinders were isolated from the system
draulic systems that perform the
and checked for internal leaks. One of the cylinders
function. When the cylinders
that worked well had a small by-pass, but it did not
extend to a clamp position, one sys-
affect the needed cycle time. They installed flow me-
temters
seems to slow down with a drop
and all four pumps checked out as being in good
in pressure
condition.
for a short time, and then until pressure reached 1100 psi, then Any ideas about the cause of the
the pressure climbs back to minimum
Any ideas about the cause of the problem?
the pressure control would unload problem?
pressure needed to do the work. The again. The problem circuit seemed to
other three systems stroke quickly cycle more frequently than the others.
without the pressure dip experienced All four cylinders were isolated
by the one problem unit. from the system and checked for
Maintenance checked the gas pre- internal leaks. One of the cylin-
charge on all four piston accumulators ders that worked well had a small
and confirmed they were all close to by-pass, but it did not affect the
500 psi. They made sure all the ac- needed cycle time. They installed
cumulator bleed down valves were flow meters and all four pumps
open and had drained all the hydraulic checked out as being in good
pressure from the systems. condition.
When running and when idle, all
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four systems would cycle on and off

as you would expect with accumula- Solution to June’s NASA boom problem
tor unloading circuits as shown in the
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circuit. When pressure reached 1100 As a rule, when a closed-loop hydraulic control system goes to a commanded

Solution to a pachyderm problem
A size D03 hydraulic valve was ripped
from its base by an elephant at a ma-
jor zoo. The replacement valve could
be shifted electrically, but not manually.
Surprisingly, the solution was a simple
one.
After some investigation at the zoo,
Dale Schaefer, a consultant and instruc-
tor of CFC-Solar, discovered that the directional valve had
been mounted 180° from the correct position. Remounting
the valve solved the problem.
D03 bolt patterns are not symmetrical, and some valves
have a locating pin next to the pressure port to prevent the
valves from being mounted 180° from the correct position.
The pattern is a rectangle with two bolts closer together
on the small end of the rectangle. However, several manu-
facturers supply modules that can be rotated to move their
function of the screw-in cartridge to a different port or to
reverse the bypass check. To accomplish this, the mount-
ing bolt holes are enlarged to accommodate the bolt hole
variances, and the locating pins are omitted, removed, or
shipped loose for field installation.
Because the modules have larger holes, the mounting
bolts can deflect just enough to allow the directional valve
to be mounted in the reversed, 180°, position. Conse-
Solution to a steel mill problem
After an equipment update at a
steel mill, a machine was undergo-
ing bumps and jolts during position-
ing of its polishing heads. Replac-
ing a proportional valve did not help.
And an electrical engineer found
that the electrical signal to the valve
was clean and consistent in both in-
creasing and decreasing modes.
To solve the problem, the maintenance department
called in an outside hydraulic service shop for help. Dan
Turner, of Turner Hydraulics, Carlisle Pa., examined the
control and hydraulic system and felt the problem was
probably the deadband of the proportional pressure and
relieving valve. When the spool is controlling pressure, it
acts as a modulating flow control. However, when it needs
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quently, the pressure and tank ports become reversed,
with the valve’s pressure port connected to tank and its
tank port connected to supply pressure.
Newer wet-pin type solenoids feature a movable ar-
mature assembly inside a core tube that a removable
coil fits over. The armatures of the solenoid assembly are
internally connected to the tank port. When the tank port
is pressurized, both armatures have the same hydraulic
pressure applied to both ends of each armature, creating a
balance between them. However, the manual push pin has
an area opposite the area where finger force is applied.
Therefore, the higher the tank pressure, the higher the
force holding and forcing the push pin out. Applying system
pressure to this area makes it almost impossible to shift
the armature manually. But because the armatures are
hydraulically balanced, the electrical solenoids work fine.
Another concern is the pressure rating of the core tubes.
Some are only rated to 1,000 psi, whereas others can
handle 3,000 to 4,500 psi. If pressurized beyond its rated
maximum, the core tube can leak, expand, and even rup-
ture, which would blow the coil assembly off the valve body.
This is not an uncommon problem; we find this condition
is not discovered during startup and debugging or is often
just ignored because the electrical solenoids do their job.
to reduce the flow faster than the built-in bleed off, the
spool moves to completely block off the supply and open
the outlet to the relieving port.
This type of pressure relieving valve normally has a
spool with the same deadband characteristics as a stan-
dard directional valve spool. Turner found the valve to be a
Sun Hydraulics PRDP type and confirmed this deadband
construction. (Sun calls it their closed-center version.) He
also found that Sun Hydraulics makes a PRDL model,
what they call an open-transition version that has a more
dynamic and bumpless transition between reducing and
relieving modes. It also fits in the same cavity as the origi-
nal valve.
The mill installed the new PRDL valve, which solved the
problem.
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Solution to regen circuit problem
After a hydraulic regeneration
circuit was updated at a steel
mill, the system kept crashing.
A mechanical engineer initially
thought feedback on the spool
of the valve would control the
speed of the cylinders at its
original velocity. He needed to
take into consideration that if
he did not close down the spool
opening along with the Auto cycle from the PLC command,
Solution to snow plow problem
The pressure hose that
kept bursting on the snow
plow truck not only was the
largest size used, but had an
operating pressure of 2,250
psi, whereas all the actuator
hoses were smaller in size
and had a working pressure
of 3,000 psi. Hoses fail due to
several reasons, but to blow
a hole through a relatively new
hose is normally a pressure problem. However, the pump
compensator setting was tagged indicating a setting of
2,000 psi.
Turner Hydraulics felt that regardless of the possible
problems in the valve assembly, the pump should com-
pensate. The PAVC65 Parker pump is a little different
from most load sensing, pressure compensated pumps
because it does not have a case drain line. The case is
part of the suction connection, and the drain line is actu-
ally a control drain. In addition to this difference, most
pumps have the compensator and load sense controls
assembled in a parallel circuit setup so the control with
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“re-gen” would cause the cylinder to extend approximately
twice as fast. Proportional valves that don’t use spool feed-
back have an average hysteresis of ±4% while valves with
spool feedback average approxi-mately ±½%. Spool feed-
back simply improves the accuracy of the com-manded
spool position. In addition to the spool’s position accuracy,
any change in the pressure drop across the spool will also
change the flow across it. Secondly, the deceleration on
the extend circuit needed to be en-gaged much sooner if
the cylinder speed was not lowered to its original velocity
taking “regen” into consideration.
the lowest setting causes the pump to compensate.
The Parker pump has its load sense differential spring
area relieved by the maximum pressure compensator.
They are configured in series, and changing the load
sense differential spring increases or decreases the
maximum compensator setting.
It was discovered that the control drain and load sense
connections were switched — causing the pump to re-
spond like a fixed-displacement pump without a relief.
The two identical looking hoses were switched, and
the pump began compensating. However, an additional
problem was discovered. When the system was running
in the neutral position, pressure dropped to about 125
psi. The system pressure should have gone to 2,000 psi
and compensated the pump. Further inspection found
the directional valve outlet section was set up with a pipe
plug isolating the pressure from the tank, making the
valve a blocked-center type necessary for these types of
pumps. They found the pipe plug threads were stripped
and the plug was lodged in the tank cavity. This probably
caused the “thump” noise when they first started the
system up. After this was corrected, the pump now com-
pensates at the 2,000 psi setting.
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 TROUBLESHOOTING

CHALLENGE
SOLUTIONS

Solution to mine pump problem

When pressure compensated
pumps are compensating, and
then a circuit is activated, the de-
mand for flow can be greater than
the pump reaction time, causing a
momentary pressure drop. In this
case, the pressure drop fell below
the 1,000 psi pressure switch set-
ting. The 1-pt accumulators were
specified to provide the instant
flow needed during this short pe-
riod until the pump flow could maintain pressure above
the minimum 1000 psi. When the Nitrogen pre-change
was checked, it was discovered that the accumulator blad-
der had failed and was causing the problem.
Both pumps had case drain flow meters, and measur-
ing the case drain flow while a pump is compensating
at maximum system pressure is a good indicator of the
pump’s condition.
If personnel would have checked the flow, they would
have found it to be in the normal range and possibly in-
vestigated a little further to find the true problem.
When I owned a repair shop in the 1980s, it amazed me
how many pumps we received for repair that showed no
internal signs of failure.

Solution to NASA boom problem

As a rule, when a closed-loop hydraulic control system goes to a commanded position and tends
to oscillate, a gain adjustment is usually set too high and needs to be adjusted to a lower value or
the PID loop needs to be tuned. However, these adjustments didn’t solve the problem.
What they found causing the problem was that a ball screw backlash adjustment was exces-
sively loose. When the hydraulic system was commanded to correct the overshoot, the hydraulic
motor turned in the opposite direction, but the ball screw didn’t respond quickly. When it did
move, it lunged past the set point. The problem needed a mechanical adjustment to reduce the
backlash in the ball screw and was not caused by the hydraulic or electrical control system.

Solution to clamping system problem

Webb Snow, a Certified Fluid Power
Specialist with Advanced Industrial
Products, was visiting the mill that
was trying to solve the pressure dip
problem on their welding station.
Webb was asked about accumula-
tor precharge pressures and if there
was a standard to go by. (That’s a
question I frequently hear, and there
is no standard answer. Accumula-
tor precharge pressure depends on the machine’s speed,
minimum hydraulic pressure, cycle time, and other consid-
erations.)
Webb had them explain their need to understand pre-
charge pressure, then asked if the system was using a pis-
ton-type accumulator. Webb suggested they remove the ac-
cumulator from the machine and completely relieve the gas
precharge. With the gas precharge valve open, he had them
tilt the oil end of the accumulator up higher than the gas end.
Oil then leaked out of the gas precharge valve, confirming
that the piston was defective and in need of repair.
With piston-type accumulators, oil can leak past the pis-
ton into the gas area. However, the piston’s multiple seal
design can keep gas from leaking into the oil side, which if
more likely wth bladder-type accumulators.
As oil accumulates in the gas volume on top of the piston,
it reduces the volume available for the precharge gas. This
reduced gas volume also causes the accumulator to hold
less oil when fully charged to the 1,100 psi. Therefore, the
pressure drops quicker as the oil leaves the accumulator.

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