Help identifying hydraulic system component - piston accumulator?

[dschad]

Hi all,
I picked up an industrial press which was part of a automated production process. I not sure how it was plumbed or how fast it moved or anything like that, so I can just try to guess/reverse engineer to the best of my understanding.

The press cylinder is 8" diameter with a 1" port at the top (rod side), and a 2.5" port at the bottom. Attached to the bottom port is what I believe to be a piston hydraulic accumulator:



There is a 1" line at the base of the assumed accumulator, and a much smaller port (1/2"?) at the top. A point of confusion here - the top port was for hydraulic fluid, not a gas - but in my searching I have not seen any piston accumulators which use hydraulic oil as the "energy storage" side. I'm thinking that it doesn't make sense since it isn't compressible, which leads me to wonder if this is in fact an accumulator.

Questions:
1) Is this an accumulator, and if it isn't, what is it and what purpose does it serve?

2) If it is an accumulator, can I just plug the small port and use it? What purpose could it be used for with oil on both sides? Driving some other part of the circuit, or "accumulator stuff"?

Thank you for any assistance,

Don

 

[boslab]

I’ve only used air over oil in presses, nitrogen bladder in hydraulic systems , what you have looks air over oil intensifier , big piston side air, small end hydraulic actuator
Mark

 

[RC Mech]

If you’re referring to the silver hex part in the bottom of the photo, it’s likely a check valve.

 

[john.k]

May have a coil spring inside .

 

[William Lynn]

I believe you mean an intensifier. Could be an air over oil, but more than likely an oil over oil intensifier.

 

[dschad]

Hi all - thanks for the replies. I think that an oil over oil intensifier makes a lot sense...it allows me to start to understand some of the other plumbing I was seeing.

I believe that overall the press had a relatively short working range, and probably moved relatively slowly. This makes sense since it was not a general use machine, it was doing a specific task (injection molding of shoe soles). The feed and return lines are pretty small, with the intensifier being the largest (2.5" port).

[Edited]

I just pulled it off again and looked down the barrel. It is clearly a piston, about 1.5" ID at the cylinder side. The top is about 4" OD, so it is about a 7x force multiplier, I believe. It has an 8" stroke. Unfortunately for me, the intensifier will only move the 8" main cylinder about .3 inches at this high pressure. My initial (incorrect) calculations made me think I'd get more travel and could use it as a dual speed/pressure option by incorporating a pressure valve/diversion circuit.

Thanks for help in identifying this,

Don

 

[William Lynn]

Hi all - thanks for the replies. I think that an oil over oil intensifier makes a lot sense...it allows me to start to understand some of the other plumbing I was seeing.

I believe that overall the press had a relatively short working range, and probably moved relatively slowly. This makes sense since it was not a general use machine, it was doing a specific task (injection molding of shoe soles). The feed and return lines are pretty small, with the intensifier being the largest (2.5" port).

[Edited]

I just pulled it off again and looked down the barrel. It is clearly a piston, about 1.5" ID at the cylinder side. The top is about 4" OD, so it is about a 7x force multiplier, I believe. It has an 8" stroke. Unfortunately for me, the intensifier will only move the 8" main cylinder about .3 inches at this high pressure. My initial (incorrect) calculations made me think I'd get more travel and could use it as a dual speed/pressure option by incorporating a pressure valve/diversion circuit.

Thanks for help in identifying this,

Don

Intensifiers increase the final pressure once the main cylinder has moved whatever it's connected to. It is not made to move the main cylinder.