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CHAPTER16:Accumulators
BudTrinkel
Sun,20070520(Allday)

Hydropneumaticaccumulators

Hydraulicaccumulators

Accumulatorsmakeitpossibletostoreuseablevolumesofalmostnoncompressiblehydraulicfluidunder
pressure.ThesymbolsandsimplifiedcutawayviewsinFigure161showseveraltypesofaccumulatorsusedin
industrialapplications.Theyarenotcompleterepresentationsbuttheyillustrategeneralworkingprinciples.

A5galcontainercompletelyfullofhydraulicoilat2000psiwillonlydischargeafewcubicinchesoffluidbefore
thepressuredropsto0psi.Ifthesamecontainerwerefilledhalfwithoilandhalfwithnitrogengas,itcould
dischargemorethan11/2gallonsoffluidwhilepressureonlydropped1000psi.Thisisthegreatadvantageof
hydropneumaticaccumulators.

Related

QuizonChapter16:Accumulators

CHAPTER17:AirOilSystems&Intensifiers

CHAPTER18:MiscellaneousFluidPowerItems

Accumulatortypes

Noseparator:Someoriginalaccumulatorswerehighpressurecontainerswithasightglasstoshowfluidlevel.They
werefilledapproximatelyhalfwithoilandhalfwithnitrogengaswithnoseparationbarrierbetweenthem.
Beforestoppingthepump,ashutoffvalveattheaccumulatordischargeportwasclosedtopreventfluidandgas
fromescaping.Thistypeofaccumulatorisnotusedonnewcircuitstoday,buttherestillaremanyinservice.

Gaschargedbladder:Manyaccumulatorsnowusearubberbladdertoseparatethegasandliquid.Apoppetvalve
inthedischargeportkeepsthebladderfromextrudingwhenthepumpisoff.Theoriginaldesignwasthebottom
repairstyle,shownontheleftinFigure161.Itisstillofferedbymostmanufacturers.Thetoprepairstyleonthe
rightisnowavailableandmakesbladderreplacementsimpleandfast.

Gaschargedpiston:Thegaschargedpistonaccumulatorhasafreefloatingpistonwithsealstoseparatetheliquid
andgas.Itoperatesandperformssimilarlytothebladdertype,buthassomeadvantagesincertainapplications.A
gaschargedpistonaccumulatorcancosttwiceasmuchasanequalsizedbladdertype.

Springloadedpiston:Aspringloadedpistonaccumulatorisidenticaltoagaschargedunit,exceptthataspring
forcesthepistonagainsttheliquid.Itsmainadvantageisthatthereisnogastoleak.Amaindisadvantageisthat
thisdesignisnotgoodforhighpressureandlargevolume.
Weightloaded:Allgaschargedaccumulatorslosepressureasfluiddischarges.Thisisbecausethenitrogengaswas
compressedbyincomingfluidfromthepumpandthegasmustexpandtopushfluidout.Theweightloaded
accumulatorinFigure161doesnotlosepressureuntiltherambottomsout.Thus100%ofthefluidisusefulatfull
systempressure.Themajordrawbacktoweightloadedaccumulatorsistheirphysicalsize.Theytakeupalotof
spaceandareveryheavyifmuchvolumeisrequired.Theyworkwellincentralhydraulicsystemsbecausethere
usuallyisroomfortheminthepowerunitarea.However,centralhydraulicsystemsarefallingoutoffavor,soonly
afewfacilitiesuseweightloadedaccumulators.(Rollingmillsareoneapplicationwherespacetoplacelargeitems
isnotaproblem.)Notethatthereisoftenalongdwelltimetofillthesemonsters.

Diaphragmaccumulators:Therearealsodiaphragmaccumulatorswithresilientormetaldiaphragms.Theyare
usedwherethestoredvolumeissmall.

Whyare
accumulators
used?
Tosupplementpumpflow:The
mostcommonusefor
accumulatorsistosupplement
pumpflow.Somecircuitsrequire
highvolumeflowforashorttime
andthenuselittleornofluidfor
anextendedperiod.Generally
speaking,whenhalformoreofthe
machinecycleisnotusingpump
flow,theapplicationisalikely
candidateforanaccumulator
circuit.

ThecircuitinFigure162usesseveralaccumulatorstosupplementpumpflowbecausethedwelltimeis45seconds
outofthe57.5secondcycletime.Thiscircuits22gpmfixedvolumepumpoperatesonpressureduringmostofthe
cycletofillthecylinderandtheaccumulators.Withouttheaccumulators,thiscircuitwouldrequirea100gpm
pumpdrivenbya125hpmotor.Thefirstcostofthesmallerpumpandmotorplustheaccumulatorsisverycloseto
thatofthelargerpumpandmotor.However,energysavingsoverthelifeofthemachinemakethepicturedcircuit
muchmoreeconomical.

Onedrawbackofusingaccumulatorstosupplementpumpflowisthatthecircuitmustoperateatapressurehigher
thanneededtoperformthework.InthecircuitinFigure162,aminimumof2000psiisnecessarytoperformthe
work.Thismeanstheaccumulatorsmustbefilledtoahigherpressuresotheycansupplyextrafluidwithout
droppingbelowtheminimumpressure.Thiscircuituses3000psimaximumpressuretostoreenoughfluidtocycle
thecylinderintheallottedtimeandstillhaveampleforcetodothework.Theflowcontrolinthecircuitisnecessary
tokeepthecylinderfromcyclingtoorapidly.Anaccumulatordischargesfluidatanyvelocitythelinescanhandleat
whateverthepressuredropiswhenaflowpathisopened.

ThecircuitinFigure162usesafixedvolumepumpandanaccumulatorunloadinganddumpvalve.Thevalve
forcespumpflowtotheaccumulatorswhenpressuredropsapproximately15%belowitsmaximumsetpressure.At
setpressure,theunloadingvalveopensandallpumpflowbypassestotankat25to50psipressuredrop.While
thepumpisbypassing,acheckvalvekeepstheaccumulatorsfromunloadingtotank.Thedumpvalve(whichisa
highratio,pilottoclosecheckvalve)isheldclosedbypumpidlepressureuntilthepumpshutsdown.
Tomaintainpressure:Anothercommonapplicationfor
accumulatorsistomaintainpressureinacircuitwhile
thepumpisunloaded.Thisisespeciallyusefulwhen
usingfixedvolumepumpsonlongholdingcycles.The
laminatingpresscircuitinFigure163clampsmaterial
andholdsitatforceforonetofiveminutes.Ifthepump
wereflowingacrossthereliefvalveathighpressurefor
thislengthoftime,alotofheatwouldbegenerated,
wastingenergy.Withapressurecompensatedpump,
energylosswouldbeless,butthesystemmightstill
overheatinashorttime.

Addinganaccumulator,flowcontrol,andpressure
switchtothefixedvolumepumpcircuitallowsthepump
tounloadwhenpressureisatorabovethepressure
switchsminimumsetting.Ifleakageatthevalveor
cylindersealsallowspressuretodropabout5%,the
pressureswitchshiftsthedirectionalcontrolvalveto
pressurizethecylindercapendandbuildpressureback
tomaximum.Theonlytimethepumpisloadediswhen
fluidisrequired.Thiscircuitwilllaminateparts
continuouslyanddoesnotneedaheatexchanger.The
flowcontrolshouldbesetatareducedratesothe
accumulatordoesnotdumptoorapidlywhenthe
directionalcontrolvalveshiftstoretracttheplaten.
Flowtomakeupforleakageisminoranddoesnot
needahighrate.

TheaccumulatordumpvalveinFigure163isahigh
ratiopilottoclosecheckvalvethatisheldclosedby
thelowpressurewhenthepumpisunloaded.Itopens
todischargeanystoredenergywhenthepumpshuts
down.

Toabsorbshock:Fastmovinghydrauliccircuitscan
producepressurespikesthatcauseshockwhenflowis
stoppedabruptly.Accumulatorscanbeinstalledin
suchshockpronecircuitstoreducedamagingpressure
andflowspikestoanacceptablerateoreliminate
themcompletely.(Accumulatorscanhandleother
pressurespikeconcernswithsomevalveadditionsfor
specialinstances.)

Figure164depictsanaccumulatorinstalledtoeliminatethepressurespikecausedbysuddenflowblockage.The
nitrogenchargeinthisinstallationshouldbe5to10%abovetheworkingpressure.Thiskeepstheaccumulatorout
ofthecircuitexceptduringpressurespikesituations.Abladdertypeaccumulatorworksbestherebecauseofits
fastresponsetopressurechanges.(Usecautionwhenapplyingaccumulatorstoshocksituations.Itispossibleto
actuallyincreaseshockinsteadofreducingoreliminatingit.)

Asanemergencypowersupply:Somehydraulicallyoperatedmachinesmayalwaysneedtostopintheopen
positiontokeepfromdamagingproductorequipment.Whenapowerfailureshutsthehydraulicpumpoffandthe
machinehappenstobesomepositionotherthanopen,thereneedstobesomewaytogetitopen.Anenginedriven
 standbypumpcouldfillthebillandinsomeinstancesmightbethebest
remedy.Anotheroptionistouseaccumulatorsthatarechargedbefore
thefirstcycleandheldthatwayuntilthemachineshutsdown.Thestored
energyisreadytocyclethemachinetotheopenpositionincaseofa
powerfailure.

ThecircuitinFigure165operatesaslidegateonawastematerialbinthatopenshydraulicallytofillatransfer
truck.Thecircuitislocatedinaremoteareathatispronetopowerfailure,soitwasdesignedtoautomaticallyclose
thegateincasepowerwentoff.

Theschematicdiagramshowsthecylinderatrestwith
thepumprunning.Whentheunitstarts,solenoidsC
andC2onthenormallyopen2waydirectionalvalves
areenergized.Theystayenergizedwhilethepumpis
on.Thefirstpumpflowgoesthroughthecheckvalve
andfillstheaccumulatorwithenoughfluidtoextend
thecylinderfromanyopenposition.Whenelectrical
powerisavailable,thegatecanbeopenedandclosed
todumpwastematerialintothewaitingtruck.Ifa
truckisfillingandapowerfailureoccurs,thepump
stopsandallsolenoidsdeenergize.Atthispointthe
accumulatorisportedtothecylindercapendandfluid
inthecylinderrodendhasafreepathtotank.

Noticethemanualdrainconnectedtothelinebetween
thecheckvalveandtheaccumulator.Thisdrainmust
beopenedbeforeworkingonthecircuit.Aplacardon
themachinewarnsmaintenancepersonnelofthe
potentialdangeriftheaccumulatorisnotdrained.Emergencypowersuppliesaretheonlyaccumulatorcircuitthat
cannotbedrainedautomaticallyinmostcases.

Accumulatorprecautions
Alwaysarrangesomemethodtodraintheaccumulatoratshutdown.(Attheendofthissection,severalways
todrainanaccumulatorautomaticallyareshown.Plus,thereisalwaystheoldstandby,amanualdrain.)
Neverworkonacircuitwithanaccumulatoruntilyouaresureitisdepressurized.
Makesureaccumulatorflowisrestrictedtoareasonablerateduringoperationandshutdowntoavoid
damagetothemachineorpiping.Accumulatorswilldischargefluidatanyratetheexitflowpathwillallow.
Suchhighflowdoesnotlastlong,butthedamageitcausesisdonequickly.
Alwaysisolatethepumpfromtheaccumulatorwithacheckvalvesofluidcannotbackflowintothepump.
Withoutacheckvalve,accumulatorbackflowcandrivethepumpbackwardandoverspeedittodestruction
insomeinstances.
Checktheaccumulatorsprechargepressureatinstallationandatleastonceadayforthefirstweekof
operation.Ifthereisnonoticeablelossofpressureduringthistime,dothenextcheckaweeklater.Ifallis
wellthen,doaroutinecheckeverythreetosixmonthsthereafter.Whenevertheaccumulatorprecharge
dropsbelownominalpressure,thevolumeofavailablefluidisreducedandfinallythecycleslows.

Onewaytocheckaccumulatorprechargeistoturnoffthepump,allowtheaccumulatortoemptyalloilbackto
tank,andthenconnecttheitemsinachargekit,Figure166.Firstremovethegasvalvecapandinstallthechargekit
gauge,hose,andteehandleassemblyonthegasvalve.Next,turntheteehandleintoopenthevalveandreadgauge
pressure.However,everytimethisoperationisperformedthereisthechancethevalvewillnotreseatandgaswill
starttoleak.
Toavoidpotentialgasleakage,Figure167illustratestwononinvasivemethodsto
checkprecharge.Botharefast,simple,andcanbedonealmostanytimewithouta
lengthyinterruptionofproduction.Eitherofthesewaysgivesafastreasonablyclose
checkwithoutinvadinganyplumbing.Theyarenot100%accurate,butwillbewithin
5%ofthegaugereadingwithalmostanyonedoingthem.Themethodontheleftis
theleastaccurateespeciallywhenusingaglycerinfilledgauge.

ThePumpJustStartingmethodontheleftshowsajumpinpressureafterthepump
startsthenasteadyclimbtosetpressure.Thisfirstjumpistheprechargepressure
andthesteadyclimbisduringcompressionofthegasinthebladderorbehindthe
piston.Thelengthoftimebetweenthefirstpressurejumpandreachingsystem
pressuredependsonthevolumeoftheaccumulatorandthepumpoutput.

ThePumpShutoffFromFullPressuremethodiseasiest
andmostaccurate,especiallyiftheaccumulatordump
valveismanuallyoperated.Fluidcanbebledoffslowly
withamanualdumpsothegaugereachesprecharge
pressureslowly.

Withthismethodthesystemmustbeatpressureand
theaccumulatorchargedatleastaboveprecharge
pressure.Atsystemshutdowneitheranautomaticor
manualdrainisopenedandpressurestartstofall.
Becausethegaugeisreadingoilpressureandtheonly
reasonthereispressureisbecauseoftrappedgasabove
it,pressurewillfalltoapointthensuddenlydropto
zero.Readthepressureasthegaugesuddenlydropstozerotodeterminegasprecharge.

Thismethodisthemostaccuratebutisnotpreciselikeagaugereading,souseitforacursorycheckasoftenas
necessarytoseeifthegaschargeisholding.

Accumulatorprechargepressure

Normally,gaschargedaccumulatorsareprechargedtoapproximately85%ofthesystemsminimumworking
pressure.Thisassuresthatthebladderorpistondoesnotdischargeallthefluidduringeverycycle.Ifallfluidis
evacuatedathighrates,bladderscangetcaughtinthepoppetvalvesandpistonscanbedeformedwhenmetalhits
metal.

Incertainapplications,this85%figuremaybelowbecauseminimumsystempressureislow.Insuchacase,usea
pistontypeaccumulatorbecausethepistoncanmoveuptheborealmostanydistancewithoutdamage.Abladder
accumulatorshouldnotbeusedwhenprechargepressureislessthanhalfthemaximumpressure.Thisavoids
compressingthebladdersotightlythatrubbingactiononitselfwearsholesinit.

Applyingaccumulators

Manyapplicationscanuseanytypeaccumulatorwithequallysatisfactoryresults.However,therearesomecases
whereoneparticularstyleismoreresponsiveoroffersalongerservicelife.Asmentionedintheprevioussection,
theamountofprechargepressureisonereasonforselectingabladderorpistonaccumulator.

Weightloadedaccumulatorsrespondtopressurebuildupslowlysotheydonotworkwellasshockabsorbers.
Weightloadedaccumulatorswillreducebutnotstoppressurespikes.Pistonaccumulatorsarenotasfastas
bladdertypesatrespondingtofastincreasestopressure.Sointhesesituations,thebestchoiceisabladdertype
accumulator.
Someaccumulatorcircuitsareinstalledtodampenhighpressurespikesattheoutletofpistonpumps.Apiston
accumulatorinthisapplicationcannotrespondquicklyenoughtodothejob.Also,theshortstrokingdistanceofthe
pistonandsealscancauseexcessiveweartotheboreandseals.Abladderaccumulatorworksbestinthistype
circuit.

Sizingaccumulators

Mostaccumulatorsuppliersofferinformationintheirliteratureaboutsizingaccumulatorsforanyoftheabove
circuits.Manyoffercomputerprogramsthatonlyrequiretheinputofsystemrequirements.Theprogramthen
figuresaccumulatorsizeandoutputsapartnumber.Onecompanyoffersaformulaandsoftwareforuseonthe
Internet.

Accumulatordumpvalves
Inalltheforegoingaccumulatorapplications(excepttheoneforemergencypowersupply),theaccumulatorfluid
wasdrainedautomaticallyatshutdown.Thisisveryimportantbecauseaccumulatorsstoreenergythatcanbea
safetyhazardandcancausedamagetothemachine.Hereareexamplesofdifferenttypesofaccumulatordump
valvesandcircuits.

Figure168showsonefrequentlyusedcircuit.Anormallyopen,solenoidoperated,2waydirectionalcontrolvalve
isteedintothepumplinebetweentheisolationcheckvalveandtheaccumulator.Thesolenoidiswiredsothatitis
energizedwhenthepumpstartsanddeenergizedwhenthepumpstops.Anorificeinfrontofthe2wayvalve
controlsflowwhentheaccumulatorisdischargingtopreventdamagetothevalve.Thisarrangementworksequally
wellwithfixeddisplacementorpressurecompensatedpumps.

Anoteofcaution:Somesolenoidvalves,eventhoughtheyaredesigned
forcontinuousduty,getveryhotwhenenergizedforlongperiods.
Suchoverheatingcancausevarnishdepositstoformandlockthe
valvesinternalpartsintheclosedconditionafterthepumpshuts
down.Thismeansthetrappedenergydoesnotgetdischargedandthe
accumulatorcancauseharmtoanyoneworkingonthecircuit.

ThedumpcircuitinFigure169isonlyforpressurecompensated
pumps.Apackagedsetofvalvesisolatestheaccumulatorwhilethe
pumpisrunningandautomaticallydumpitatshutdown.Thepackage
consistsofanisolationcheckvalve,apilottoclosecheckvalve,anda
flowcontrolorifice.

Atpumpstartup,flowgoestothecircuitandtheaccumulator.Pressure
fromthepumpoutletshiftsthepilottoclosecheckvalve,blockingflow
totank.Whentheaccumulatorisfull,thepumpcompensatestono
flowandthecircuitwaitsforanewcycle.Whenpressuredrops,the
pumpcomesbackonstrokeandmakesupforflowgoingtothecircuit.
Atpumpshutdown,pilotpressuretothepilottoclosecheckvalve
dropsandthevalveshiftstoopen.Now,storedenergyinthe
accumulatorisportedtotankthroughtheorifice.Thiscircuitisvery
reliablebecauseitdependsonsystemorpumppressuretoclose
and/oropenvalves.

Afixedvolumepumpmustbeportedtotankatverylowpressurewhen
itsflowisnotdoingwork.Acommoncircuitforunloadingafixed
volumepumpanddumpinganaccumulatorisshowninFigure1610.
Aninternallypilotedunloadingreliefvalvewithintegralcheckvalveforcesallpumpflowtothecircuitandthe
accumulatoruntilthesystemreachesthesetpressure.Asthecontrolballstartstorelieve,systempressurepushes
againsttheunloadingpistonandforcesitoffitsseat.Thistakesallpressureoffthetopofthereliefvalvepoppet.
Thepumpunloadstotankat25to100psiuntilsystempressuredropsapproximately15%.Afterthatdrop,spring
forcepushestheunloadpistonbackandpumpflowgoestothecircuitagain.

Theaccumulatordumpvalveblocksfluidfromgoingto
tankwhilethepumpisrunningandopenstodischarge
storedenergywhenthepumpshutsdown.The
accumulatordumpvalveisahighratio(upto200:1)
pilottoclosecheckvalvethatisheldshutbythepump's
unloadedorworkpressure.Witha200:1arearatio
betweenthepoppetandthepilotpiston,25psipressure
atthepilotportwillstopasmuchas5000psiatthe
poppetshutoff.Thiskeepsfluidintheaccumulator
circuituntilthepumpisshutdown.Then,allstored
pressurizedfluidflowstotankquicklyandsafely.(One
supplierofferstheunloadingreliefvalveandthe
accumulatordumpvalveinasinglebody.This
combinationsimplifiespipingwhileofferingthesame
effect.)

Otheraccumulatorapplications

Accumulatorsarealsousedforsystemswherethermalexpansioncouldcauseexcessivepressure.Cylinderswith
blockedportsinahighambientheatareacangotohighpressureifthereisnoplaceforexpandingfluidtogo.

Anotheruseforaccumulatorsisasabarrierbetweentwodifferentfluids.Thepumpthatuseshydraulicfluidkeeps
pressureonacircuitthatuseswateroranotherincompatiblemedium.

Onesupplierofferslowpressureaccumulatorsasbreathingdevicesforsealedreservoirs.Thiskeepsairborne
contaminantsoutofthehydraulicoilasthefluidlevelrisesandfalls.

Formorecircuitsandotherinformationonaccumulators,seetheauthorsupcomingebookFluidPowerCircuits
Explained.

SourceURL:http://hydraulicspneumatics.com/othertechnologies/chapter16accumulators