Botswana energy saving hydraulic station accumulator

How can accumulators reduce the size of a hydraulic system?

Supplementing pump flow In many hydraulic systems where high flow is required for a short duration, followed by a few seconds of dwell time, the size of pumps and electric motors can be significantly reduced by incorporating accumulators into the system.

Do hydropneumatic accumulators save energy?

Hydraulic circuit designers in-the-know incorporate hydropneumatic accumulators into their systems to reduce cost and save energy. In the past, low-cost energy, plus a desire to keep the design as simple as possible, meant few accumulators were incorporated into initial system designs.

What are accumulators used for?

With today’s high fuel cost, accumulators are finding use as rechargeable hydraulic batteries for energy recovery applications in both mobile and stationary equipment. One typical application where they are used is in excavators. Their lift arms are massive, and high force is generated when they are lowered.

How do accumulators work in a power generating plant?

In power generating plants, where a fail-safe gate or butterfly valves are held closed by a heavy spring, a cylinder is used to keep the spring collapsed and the valve open. The accumulator keeps pressure on the cylinder, holding the spring in the collapsed position while the pump is unloaded to conserve energy and keep the fluid from heating up.

How can accumulators reduce pump size?

By using the resulting high-pressure hydraulic fluid to charge an accumulator, the stored energy in the accumulator can then be used to supplement pump flow when it is time to raise the excavator arms and their load. This energy recovery approach makes it possible to reduce pump size by 25%.

What does a hydraulic accumulator do?

In mobile equipment, a hydraulic accumulator can serve as an auxiliary power source when the main power source fails, such as when the engine shuts down due to a failure or depletion of fuel.