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Calcimator

Hydraulic Accumulator Calculator

Size a hydraulic bladder or piston accumulator using gas law calculations for isothermal or adiabatic processes.

Inputs

%

Results

Required volume (gal)

0.58

Recommended size (gal)1
Required volume (in³)134
Required volume (L)2.2
Precharge pressure (PSI)1,700
Discharge time (sec)1.56
Stored energy (ft·lbf)6,250
Gas vol at max pressure (in³)89.3
Stored Energy Btu8.03
Gas Volume Precharge133.99
Gas Volume Min P119.31
How to Use This Calculator
  1. Enter Required fluid volume (in³), Minimum system pressure (PSI), and Maximum system pressure (PSI).
  2. Set Precharge (% of min pressure), Process type (0=isothermal, 1=adiabatic), and Discharge flow rate (GPM).
  3. Review the Required volume (gal) result.
  4. Use Recommended size (gal) and Required volume (in³) to inform your decision.

How the result changes with Maximum system pressure (PSI)

Maximum system pressure (PSI)Required volume (gal)
1,0908.34
3,5650.43
6,5350.26
9,0100.22

What each input means

Required fluid volume (in³)
Volume of hydraulic fluid the accumulator must deliver (cubic inches).
Minimum system pressure (PSI)
Lowest allowable working pressure in the circuit.
Maximum system pressure (PSI)
Maximum working pressure (pump relief setting).
Precharge (% of min pressure)
Nitrogen precharge as percentage of minimum pressure (80-90% typical for bladder accumulators).
Process type (0=isothermal, 1=adiabatic)
Isothermal (slow, n=1.0) or adiabatic (fast cycling, n=1.4).
Discharge flow rate (GPM)
Flow rate at which the accumulator discharges.

What each result means

Required volume (gal)
Calculated accumulator total gas volume in gallons.
Recommended size (gal)
Next standard accumulator size in gallons.
Required volume (in³)
Total accumulator volume in cubic inches.
Required volume (L)
Total accumulator volume in liters.
Precharge pressure (PSI)
Nitrogen precharge pressure setting.
Discharge time (sec)
Time to discharge the required fluid volume at the specified flow rate.
Stored energy (ft·lbf)
Approximate energy stored in the accumulator.
Gas vol at max pressure (in³)
Compressed gas volume when accumulator is fully charged.

How this is calculated

Worked example, using the default values

  1. Identify Input Parameters
    4 parameters
    Required fluid volume (in³) = 30, Minimum system pressure (PSI) = 2000, Maximum system pressure (PSI) = 3000, Precharge (% of min pressure) = 85 = 6 input(s) provided
  2. Calculate Required volume
    Required volume = totalVolumeIn3 / 231
    0.58 = 0.58
  3. Calculate Recommended size
    Recommended size
    1 = 1
  4. Calculate Required volume
    134 = 134

Engine last updated . Checked against 4 independently-derived tests — how we verify calculators.

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