Hydraulic oil coolers prevent oil overheating, which can reduce system efficiency and cause wear. They use a cooling medium, such as air or water, to absorb heat from the oil and release it to the atmosphere. Coolers include radiator, shell and tube, or plate and frame types. Heat buildup in hydraulic oil can lead to decreased viscosity, reduced efficiency, and mechanical damage. Most coolers use conductive transfer to remove heat from the oil. Common types of coolers include air and water-based shell-and-tube types, plate and frame radiators, and brazed plate radiators.
A hydraulic oil cooler is a device designed to keep the oil used in hydraulic systems from overheating. This is a critical function in hydraulic systems, as overheating of the oil can lead to decreased system efficiency and excessive wear on overall system components due to reduced oil viscosity. In most cases, coolers allow the oil to release the thermal energy stored in a secondary medium, typically water or air, by passing the hot oil through a series of thin tubes exposed to a constant flow of cooling medium at low temperature. The cooling medium absorbs the heat from the oil and carries it away from the cooler, where it is typically released to the atmosphere. Common designs of hydraulic oil coolers include radiator, shell and tube, or plate and frame types.
Hydraulic systems use the power of pressurized oil to perform work such as actuating valves, machine parts or lifting equipment. The oil is pressurized by pumping it into the actuator chamber, where the internal pressure builds up to overcome the inertia force of the actuator mechanism, moving it and providing working motion in the process. One of the inevitable results of this type of system is a buildup of thermal energy, or heat, in the oil from friction and compression. A certain amount of heat build-up in the hydraulic oil is acceptable, but if it increases beyond the oil’s operating specifications, a decrease in efficiency is inevitable.
A side effect of increasing the temperature in the oil is a loss of viscosity or thickness. Hydraulic systems are designed to work effectively with an oil of a specific viscosity, and if the oil becomes too thin, it will begin to operate less efficiently as the oil continues to thin. Mechanical damage to the system is also possible as the seals begin to degrade and the moving parts receive less lubrication from the thin oil. To prevent uncontrolled heating of the oil, most high-performance hydraulic systems include a hydraulic oil cooler, a device positioned in-line with the system to allow heat to dissipate from the oil.
Most types of hydraulic oil coolers operate on a conductive transfer principle which sees heat in one medium conducted to another for removal and disposal. This is generally accomplished by passing the oil through a series of thin tubes that are exposed to direct contact with the cooling medium. Since the cooling medium is kept at a lower temperature than the oil, the heat in the oil flows into the cooling medium after exposure. The cooling medium and hydraulic oil are constantly moving through the cooler ensuring that thermal saturation and equilibrium are never reached, so the heat transfer process remains ongoing. The heat absorbed by the coolant is then lost, typically to the atmosphere, away from the hydraulic system.
There are several types of hydraulic oil coolers in general use, most of which use a stream of air or water as the cooling medium. Air coolers resemble an automobile radiator and employ a powerful fan to force air through coils that carry hot oil. Water-based oil coolers are typically of the shell-and-tube type, where the tubes carrying the oil are enclosed in a sealed shell through which cold water is circulated. Other types of hydraulic oil coolers include plate and frame radiators and brazed plate radiators.
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