M.E.S.

College of Engineering, Pune-01

NAME OF STUDENT: CLASS:

SEMESTER/YEAR: ROLL NO:
DATE OF PERFORMANCE: DATE OF SUBMISSION:
EXPERIMENT NO: EXAMINED BY:

TITLE: - Study of accessory used in hydraulic systems

AIM: Study of the reservoir, accumulators and intensifiers in a hydraulic system.

Reservoir
As hydraulic system is a closed system we need to store and reuse the oil again and again which
is accomplished using a hydraulic reservoir.
The hydraulic reservoir is a container for holding the fluid required to supply the system,
including a reserve to cover any losses from minor leakage and evaporation. The reservoir can be
designed to provide space for fluid expansion, permit air entrained in the fluid to escape, and to
help cool the fluid.
The following are some of the important components of a typical oil reservoir:

a. Oil level indicator: Glass tube through which the level of oil in the reservoir can be seen.

b. Inspection cover: Removable plate for the inspection of the tank.

c. Oil filling point: It is a hole in the cover plate on which a mesh is provided through which
oil is poured into the tank.

d. Electric oil heater: It is at the bottom of the tank and prevents the oil from freezing in cold
conditions.

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ACCUMULATOR

INTRODUCTION:

An accumulator is a reservoir in which hydraulic fluid is stored under pressure since the
fluid under pressure is equivalent to hydraulic energy; the accumulator is basically an energy
storing device. The storage of energy in the accumulator is achieved when there is surplus of
energy than required. The energy so stored would be released back to the system, when there is
short fall of energy in the system.
This is analogous to a flywheel of an IC engine which stores energy in the form of KE
when surplus and releases it during a short fall.

Classification of accumulators
1. Dead weight
2. Spring loaded
3. Gas charged
i. Direct contact type
ii. Piston type
iii. Membrane type
iv. Bladder type

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DEAD WEIGHT ACCUMULATOR:

They are very simple in design and construction. These are used for many applications.

CONSTRUCTION:

1. Basically it consists of a cylinder with tight fit ram.

2. On top of the ram, a dead weight is placed and the weight is placed and the weight acts
vertically downwards.
3. The accumulator pressure can be varied by varying the dead weight kept on the platform.

WORKING:

1. The upstream side of the accumulator is connected to the pump through a check valve. The
downstream side is connected to the load which would be an actuator.
2. During no load, the oil available from the pump is surplus. The oil is supplied to the
accumulator where it is stored. This causes the ram to rise till it reaches the top.
3. When load is connected to accumulator, the ram will start coming down under its own weight.
Simultaneously pump is also running and supplies under pressure.
4. The oil flows from pump & accumulator & meets load.
5. The end of stroke, the accumulator will be empty.
6. The load is now disconnected and the accumulator starts getting charged again.
This cycle repeats.

Work done by ram = W (1+f) L

P pump = W (1+f)/t
P acc = W (1-f)/t

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ADVANTAGES:

1. Simple design.
2. High storage capacity.
3. Oil pressure can be varied.
4. Uniform oil pressure can be maintained.

DISADVANTAGES:

1. Only vertical position mounting possible.

2. Considerable energy loss due to friction between ram and cylinder.

SPRING LOADED ACCUMULATOR

Spring loaded accumulator is similar to a dead weight type accumulator except that
dead. Weight is replaced by spring force.

CONSTRUCTION:

1. It consists of a cylinder inside which piston slides.

2. A compression spring is installed between piston and cylinder head.
3. The upstream side is connected to pump through a check valve while downstream side to load.

WORKING:

1. When the load is not connected, the excess oil flows into accumulator in the form of PE.
2. When the actuator is connected, the accumulator will supply oil under pressure to load. Also
pump will supply oil to load.
3. After the stroke, accumulator is empty & spring goes back.

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ADVANTAGES:

1. Lighter Construction
2. More Economical
3. Compact in Size
4. Configuration Easy

DISADVANTAGES:

1. Suitable only for low pressures.

2. Pressure is not uniform since spring is non linear.

GAS CHARGED ACCUMULATORS:

In this type, compressed gas under pressure is filled inside the accumulator. When there is
surplus oil, it enters into accumulator and further compresses the gas. Thus, the oil in
accumulator can be used for any application.
The types of gas charged accumulator are:
1. Piston type.
2. Diaphragm type.
3. Bladder type.

PISTON TYPE:

1. It is basically a piston cylinder arrangement.

2. The gas side of accumulator is filled with an inert gas like nitrogen.
3. For filling the gas either the volume available in the cylinder can made use of a
Separate gas flask connected to the gas side can be made use of, thus the accumulator can be
mounted in any position.
4. The gas position could be on any side.

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Factors to be considered in deciding which side of the piston the gas is filled based on
1. Available space
2. Easy for maintenance.
3. Size
4. Location
5. Contamination tolerance.

DIAPHRAGM TYPE:

1. The shape of the accumulator is of an elongated ellipse. It is fabricated into 2 Halves,

both of which are screwed or bolted together.

2. The 2 halves are internally separated into 2 chambers by a diaphragm made of

synthetic rubber-fitted between the top chamber contains gas and bottom chamber
carries oil screwed openings are provided at the top and bottom for connection to
supply gas and oil to accumulator.

3. Air valve is provided for pressurizing the gas chamber at the end of the accumulator. The
liquid port is located at its opposite end.

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BLADDER TYPE

The body of the accumulator is elongated elliptical. A bladder or bag-made of a flexible

material inserted in the body of accumulator.
The diameter of the bladder is larger at the top while it tapper at the bottom the
tapering is done on “BARLOW’S FORMULA FOR HOOP’S STRESS”.

The stress in a circle is directly proportional to the diameter and the valve thickness

 According to this, a large diameter circle will stretch faster than a smaller diameter circle.
 Alternatively, for a given diameter, a thin wall hoop will stretch faster.
 Thus, as pressure increases, the top portion of circle of bladder will be stretch first and
then the gradual stretching of bladder will proceed downwards. It implies that the
bladder will stretch against the wall from top downwards.
 Due to this, the bladders can squeeze out all the oil from accumulator.
 It also has a very good efficiency.

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APPLICATION OF AN ACCUMULATOR

 The main function of an accumulator is to smoothen out the fluctuation in output

pressure.
 In addition to this routine function, accumulator can be employed for achieving a no. of
specialized functions.

LEAKAGE COMPENSATIONS:

1. This is used when required force is needed to be applied for certain duration of
time.

2. When the DC valve is at first position, the cylinder will move forward and apply the
force.

3. If this force is to be kept applied, the pump has to be kept running else leakage
will cause the pressure drop.

4. An accumulator is connected along with pressure switch in pump line, to avoid

leakages and hence pressure drop.

5. When the pressure reaches the system pressure, the motor is switched off by the
pressure switch. The pressure drop is now made up of the oil of accumulator hence
pressure in cylinder is constant.

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Intensifier
The hydraulic intensifier is a mechanical device which is used to increase the intensity of
pressure of the fluid. It utilizes the energy of large quantity of liquid at low pressure.
Some hydraulic machines require high pressure for working but this high pressure can’t
be obtained by using pump. Some of these hydraulic machines are hydraulic press, hydraulic ram
and hydraulic lift etc. These machines require high pressure for this operation to obtain the
required amount of pressure. A hydraulic intensifier is mounted in between the pump and the
working machine.
It is very simple in construction; it has only three main parts, these parts are attached in a
proper sequence for increasing the pressure of input fluid. These three main parts are fixed ram,
sliding cylinder or ram and a fixed cylinder.
It has a number of applications:

 Hydraulic intensifier is used to supply high intensity pressure where ever need.
 It used where pump is not sufficient to provide high intensity of pressure as per the
requirement.
 It is most commonly used in hydraulic press, hydraulic ram, hydraulic cranes and
hydraulic lifts etc where high intensity of pressure is required for lift the loads.

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Electro-Hydraulic Circuit:

Electro-hydraulic circuit consists of different components such as electric motor which

converts electric energy into mechanical energy, the pump which converts mechanical energy
into hydraulic energy and the actuator convert back hydraulic energy into mechanical energy.
Control elements like valves are used which controls the fluid in the circuit such as direction
control valves, flow control valves, solenoid valves & pressure relief valves, etc.
Two positions of a self-explanatory electro-hydraulic circuit for the direct control of a
double-acting cylinder are given: the components of the typical electro hydraulic circuit include:

o Hydraulic motor
o Hydraulic linear cylinder
o Hydraulic Power Pack
o Accumulator
o Relay
o Solenoid Valves

Conclusion:

• Thus, we have studied the different accessories of a hydraulic system including reservoir
and accumulators.
• We have completed the detailed review of types of accumulators and also seen its
applications for different configurations.
• We have also studied the circuit diagrams of the intensifier and learnt about the electro
hydraulic circuits as well.

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