Case Study: Custom Synthetic Hydraulic Fluid

A wind power customer needed a custom hydraulic fluid for a hydraulic power unit

Our wind power customer's filtration hydraulic power unit used custom synthetic hydraulic fluid

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A customer in the wind power industry needed to operate a particular HPU (hydraulic power unit) in extreme temperatures and climates, without dramatically changing the design of the current hydraulic power unit.

The Challenge

The customer expected that the system would sit unused for long periods of time and would be exposed to both sub-zero temperatures and ultra-hot climates without any temperature-regulating equipment.

 

Project Parameters

  • Hydraulic power unit must be operational from -40 degrees F to +150 degrees F.
  • The unit must be able to sit unused for a long time.
  • Large valves and cooling systems were out of the question due to size concerns.
  • No dramatic changes were to be made in the design.

 

Our Solution 

The Price Engineering team decided that the solution was to develop a unique, multi-temperature, high-flash-point synthetic fluid. We teamed up with engineers at Amsoil Corporation to design a fluid that would exceed viscosity requirements of competitive ISO 32 fluids in both cold and hot temperatures. 

When it came to testing the fluid in the hydraulic power unit, we teamed up with DATASYST Engineering and Testing Services, an independent Delafield, Wisconsin-based national provider of design verification and quality testing services.

The project team tested the synthetic fluid over a 24-hour period in a controlled-environment test chamber that allowed complete control over temperature variation.

Following data acquisition, the project team was pleased to find that valve, pump and actuator performance was not significantly impacted by wide swings in the fluid temperatures.

 

Customer Benefits

  • High system productivity over wide temperature swings.
  • Improved performance within all hydraulic components.
  • Substantial savings in space and costs due to lack of fluid heaters and cooling systems.
  • The client now has the ability to operate hydraulic systems in many applications and environments.

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