Energy Efficiency has become critical in hydraulic and pneumatic systems. Hydraulic and pneumatic producers are competing to reduce energy consumption in every area they can, from improved design in valves and pumps to right-sized components, pressure regulation, machine design, and advances in hydraulic fluids. Accumulated energy savings from these individual efforts can range from 15 percent to 35 percent. Taken together, these improvements can significantly drive down energy consumption.
Much of the gains have been driven by plants' needs to drive down energy consumption. Just a few short years ago, this wasn’t a major concern as they looked to hydraulic and pneumatic systems. Those days are gone. Now, energy consumption is a major concern. As well as cost, plants are also looking to become good environmental citizens by reducing their carbon footprints.
One of the approaches to reducing energy consumption is to reduce the size and space of the components. Integrated automation is another area that delivers energy savings, and variable speed drives are yet another move for saving energy.
Design News recently gathered experts in energy efficiency in hydraulic and pneumatic systems to discuss recent advances in energy efficiency. The Design News Webcast, "Energy Efficiency: Pneumatics/Hydraulics," brings together David Dornbach, engineering manager from Hydra Force; and Neal Hanson, product manager for industrial valves and electrohydraulics at Bosch Rexroth.
With regard to pneumatic systems, the single largest cost in any plant is - LEAKS. Walk through any plant, paying attention to your ears. You will hear, EVERYWHERE, the hiss of leaking compressed air. That sound is money being literally thrown away.
If one wants to save energy, reduce consumption, then the leaks must be found and fixed. Only after the plant floor stops hissing would optimizing the pneumatic system for efficiency make sense.
It's analogous to proper tire pressure and fuel economy. Keeping tires properly inflated is probably the simplest way to improve fuel economy, but is the most ignored.
Pneumatic component suppliers are painfully aware of the leak issue, TJ. But while they've improved on the problem, they still haven't eliminated it, even after many years of trying.
Seems like this is a problem that could be fixed without getting fancy, TJ. But again, I may be mistaken. Is the solution more expensive than the inefficiencies of the problem?
The solution can be as easy as some pipe sealant paste or tape, or repairing/replacing a cracked hose. A single 1-mm air leak can cost $200 / year (based on calculations found on the net). One leak may not sound like much, but even a small plant will have multiple leaks. Just 5 is a $1000 per year, and that is if they're as small as 1 mm.
Sounds like the cost of a repair would pay for itself, TJ. As for sounds in plants, I've heard some complaints from baby boomer plant managers who say that the young engineers coming into the workforce rely too much on computer technology and they're not learning to tell the health of the plant by sound and vibration.
By experimenting with the photovoltaic reaction in solar cells, researchers at MIT have made a breakthrough in energy efficiency that significantly pushes the boundaries of current commercial cells on the market.
We looked at a number of sources to determine this year's greenest cars, from KBB to automotive trade magazines to environmental organizations. These 14 cars emerged as being great at either stretching fuel or reducing carbon footprint.
From Dell / Intel® New Paradigms in Design Work Scott Hamilton, vertical market strategist for Dell Precision workstations, 5/2/2013 3
Early in my career, I worked as a draftsman and remember the days of drawing on vellum with numbered pencils and Mylar with plastic lead. This was a fun experience in the sense that I ...
I've been using workstations for more than 10 years and love finding ways to get more performance from my system. With demanding professional applications that require more power each ...
A lasting memory from my first job as an engineer in an auto assembly plant is standing on hard concrete at six in the morning, vending-machine coffee clutched in hand, listening to ...
A quick look into the merger of two powerhouse 3D printing OEMs and the new leader in rapid prototyping solutions, Stratasys. The industrial revolution is now led by 3D printing and engineers are given the opportunity to fully maximize their design capabilities, reduce their time-to-market and functionally test prototypes cheaper, faster and easier. Bruce Bradshaw, Director of Marketing in North America, will explore the large product offering and variety of materials that will help CAD designers articulate their product design with actual, physical prototypes. This broadcast will dive deep into technical information including application specific stories from real world customers and their experiences with 3D printing. 3D Printing is
To save this item to your list of favorite Design News content so you can find it later in your Profile page, click the "Save It" button next to the item.
If you found this interesting or useful, please use the links to the services below to share it with other readers. You will need a free account with each service to share an item via that service.
Tweet This
3 
