Development and Analysis of Small Scale Water Accumulator by Using Piston Type

Abstract

An accumulator is an auxiliary component in a hydraulic system as it stores the energy and avoids the pump from running continuously through the system which can reduce the pumps life. The accumulator is also used as the power source in the hydraulic hybrid system to accelerate the vehicle. A common hydraulic system uses the hydraulic oil as their working medium, but there is an application using water due to the high accessibility and environmental concern. In this paper, an accumulator is developed by using weighing method to increase the pressure in the system. This system uses water as a medium to provide clean environment as well as safe for mobile purpose. The system includes electric motor, water pump, directional control valve, pressure control valve and motor hydraulic. The performance of the accumulator is obtained by measuring the ratio of output and input pressure. The source of electricity is varied by using an inverter to control the frequency and the power of the pump. From the experiment, the pressure output and flow rate decreased with the increasing of the loads on top of the accumulator, while the pressure loss increased with the number of load. The operational frequency is optimal at a low reading compared to a higher frequency.