Hydraulic Test Stand Fluid Contamination

Hydraulic Test Stand Fluid Contamination

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Find out how we helped a hydraulic valve manufacturer meet their ISO fluid cleanliness code requirement to test flow across their newest valve design on their test stand.

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A hydraulic valve manufacturer required ultra-clean fluid (<14/12/9) to accurately test flow across an 80-micron orifice on their test stand. The presence of significant contamination in the fluid would skew test results, rendering collected data invalid. Their system utilized 100 liters (26.4 gallons) of ISO VG 32 fluid at a flow rate of 25 lpm (6.6 gpm).

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Bennett Filtration was asked to review the manufacturer’s practices and lab reports, which revealed three critical issues: Insufficient filtration (the existing 12µ filter allowed the ISO code to rise to 19/18/16), an assumption that new oil equals clean oil (their team had been introducing new oil without prior conditioning), and improper valve and bottle flushing during sample collection. 

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In order to address this, our experts identified opportunities that led to the upgrade of onboard filtration from a 12µ filter to a 1µ filter element (HP52NL10-1MB).

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The results were impressive! Online particle counts showcased a remarkable reduction, reaching ISO counts of 14/11/0,  representing a staggering 96.8% decrease in particles >4µ, facilitating the successful testing of their new valve. Improved fluid handling practices and upgraded filtration resolved the customer’s contamination issues, ensuring pristine fluid for accurate testing and reliable results.