What Is Hydraulic Energy?

Hydraulic energy is the force created by oil under pressure. It is utilized to allow movement in certain applications. Hydraulic energy can be found operating in many everyday and specialty items, from heavy industrial machinery to machines that provide entertainment and enable travel. A few examples include some elevators, certain parts of airplanes, automobile transmissions, movable theatrical stages and industrial-grade pizza ovens.

There are different types of energy, including mechanical, electrical and hydraulic. Hydraulic cylinders transform the hydraulic energy that is created by fluid or oil under pressure into mechanical energy. A hydraulic cylinder’s design will change in accordance with the cylinder’s purpose, and so will its size.

Hydraulic energy isn’t only used in factory production lines and travel. Emergency responders also use it when they use the Jaws of Life™ to extricate an accident victim from an automobile that has crashed. Engineers are making use of hydraulic systems to simulate earthquakes when they attempt to design a building that will withstand an earthquake’s force and save lives. There is even a robot that runs on hydraulic power. Through testing with chemical agents, it will lead to better safety for military soldiers.

The hydraulic energy created by fluid under pressure must be stored somewhere, and the component used for this purpose is a hydraulic accumulator. In the most basic terms, it acts as a storage unit, or even as a shock absorber when it holds excess pressure. Like a hydraulic cylinder, the hydraulic accumulator’s size will vary according to its application. The accumulator is often designed so that it can be removed from the system it supports for routine maintenance tasks or for necessary repairs.

A hydraulic system operates with a quartet of basic components to create energy. These components include a storage space or reservoir to hold the oil, a pump whose job is to create flow through the hydraulic system’s design and the valves that control both the oil’s flow and its pressure. A hydraulic cylinder completes the quartet.

Proponents of hydraulic energy like it because the systems used to deliver it can be uncomplicated and efficient. The force created by hydraulic energy is smooth and uniform as well as flexible. Hydraulic systems are not subjected to as much stress as other types of power systems. Systems powered by fluid are generally less noisy than their solely mechanical counterparts. Disadvantages of hydraulic energy include the possibility of fluid or oil leakage, which necessitates proper maintenance and the repair of all leaks. Proper training is mandatory to prevent safety hazards, and maintenance again comes into play to keep the risk of hazards as low as possible.