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Contamination & Filtration
Our previous installment featured tips on preventing cavitation in hydraulic systems, we are going to continue with system preventative design by taking a closer look at contamination and filtration.
Contamination in a hydraulic system can include not only solids, such as metal and dirt, but also water. The latter, water, in a hydraulic system can have many negative effects, such as corrosion of system components, excessive wear and poor system performance. DMIC offers a selection of filters designed for water removal. If your hydraulic system is at risk for water contamination, consider utilizing a water removal element in your design.
Filters for solid contaminants are rated by the size of particles they remove, their Beta ratio and efficiency. A filter’s absolute micron rating is the largest size particle that will pass through the element. The micron is one-millionth of a meter (about 0.000039 inch) as used in filter sizing.
BETA Ratio and Efficiency
Beta ratio is defined as:
An example Filter Beta Ratio is: β5 = 50, which by definition is a filter that captures 50 particles of 5 µm or larger for every 1 particle of 5 µm or larger that passes through.
Beta Efficiency is defined as:
Continuing with our prior example, the Beta efficiency of our filter is
. This tells us that our filter captures 98% of all 5 µm or larger particles that passes through.
Smaller Particles?
DMIC offers elements for multiple applications including suction line, return line and inline high pressure with ratings as small as 3 µm but what about even smaller particles? DMIC is proud to announce the release of our Magnetic Filter series ranging from suction to 6,000 PSI featuring patent magnetic filter elements.The Magnetic Filter works by using patented magnet technology to remove ferrous material and some non-ferrous material from the flow stream, with particle sizes smaller than 1 µm! Contact DMIC today for an application guide!