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CORPORATION

800.523.1327 harvardcorp.com

Filter fhes

Surface feirs: Surface f ilters work by direct interception of

p a r t i c l e sl a r g e r t h e n t h e p o r e s i z e o f t h e m e d i a . D i r t i s t r a p p e d
o n t h e u p s t r e a ms i d e o f t h e m e d i a w i t h t h e h o l d i n g c a p a c i t y
l i m i t e d b y t h e n u m b e r o f p o r e si n t h e m e d i a . W h e n n e w ,
m e d i a r e s i s t a n c teo f l o w i s s m a l l ,b u t a s t h e f i l t e r b u i l d s u p
d i r t , t h e r e s i s t a n c et o f l o w r a p i d l y i n c r e a s e sT. h e c a p a c i t yo f
m o s t s u r f a c ef i f t e r m e d a s u s u a f y m e a s u r e di n g r a m s .
Depth lYpe Filterc: This type of f ilter works by both direct
i n t e r c e p t i o n o f p a r t i c l e sa n d a b s o r p t i o n ( m o l e c u l a ra t t r a c t i o n
. h e s ef i l t e r s u s e s e v e r a lt y p e s o f m e d i a t o
of particles)T
. he fluid musttake a
a c h i e v et h e g o a l o f h o l d i n g p a r t i c l e s T
l o n g e r p a t h t h r o u g h t h e f i l t e r b e f o r e e x i t i n g . N o r m a l l y ,t h e s e
f i l t e r s h a v e l a r g e h o l d i n g c a p a c i t i e sa n d i n i t i a l l y h a v e a h i g h e r
r e s i s t a n c et o f l o w . H o w e v e r ,a d r o p i n p r e s s u r eo c c u r sa s
c o n t a m i n a t i o nb u i l d s u p o r i s t r a p p e d .

The Functionsof Oil

Clean: Thisfunction is to transport undesirablemateralsin
the particlesuntil the oil
oil to the filter or hold in suspension
that keeps internal parts
is changed.Thisis the characteristic
clearof varnishand sludge build up.
Cool: An important functon of oil is to cool the machine
partsit comesinto contactwith. Somesystemsrequire that
all cooling be performed by only the oil.

Filters Systems

Full-Ffow Fierc: Designed to filter fast

f l o w i n g o i l , f u l l - fI o w f i l t e r s p r o t e c t
d o w n s t r e a m c o m p o n e n t sf r o m l a r g e r
s i z e p a r t i c u l a t e m a t t e r . T h e s ef i l t e r s
t y p i c a l l y h o l d p a r t i c l e sf r o m 2 0 t o 4 0
m i c r o n si n s i z e .T h e i r a b i l i t y t o p a s sl a r g e
v o l u m e so f f l u i d m a k e sf u l l - fl o w f i l t e r s
; ithout
u n s u i t a b l ef o r s m a l l e rp a r t i c l e s w
b e c o m i n gl a r g e a n d e x p e n s i v e .
Partial-Flow Filterc: Sometimes called
a k i d n e y l o o p , t h e s e f i l t e r sa r e d e s i g n e d
to filter a small stream of fluid;
r e t u r n i n gt h e f i l t e r e d f l u i d t o t h e s u m p
o f t h e s y s t e m .T h e s ef i l t e r s t y p i c a l l y h o l d
p a r t i c l e sf r o m 1 - 1 0 m i c r o n s .S m a l l e r
q u a n t i t i e so f f l o w a l l o w t h e f i l t e r st o
remove slighter particleswithout
aff ecting the normaI f unctions of
the system.

Seal: The film of oil that bridges the gap between two
surfacesto keepfluids in while keepingair and dirt out is
calledthe seal.An exampleis the sealthat oil providesin a
hydraulic ram or spinning shaft, the thin film of oil bridges tl
gap and isolatestwo sides.

Lubricate: Lubricationis the function of oil that allows tw

moving partsto slide past eachother wth little friction. This
film of oil is important in reducing wear and providing ease(
movement within a machine.

N u m b e ro f P a r t i c l eps e r M i l l i l i t e r
(Counts/mil)

CleanlinessLevels

Sincefluids can havesuchsmall particlesin

is
n and maintaininggood cleanliness
suspensio
economicallyimportant, the oil industry has
developedstandardsto quantify particulate
build-up. The current standardsare ISO4406c.
Ihese standardsare usedby manufacturersand
engineersto determinehow cleanfluid should
be to provde acceptableperformanceand
servicelife. A chart is usedto show the level of
particlesof a given size in a milliliter of flud and
then a grade or number is assignedto indicate
what /5O c/assthe fluid is.Hydraulic oils that are
2
usedwith servovalvesshouldhave a 1611411
level or better while in servce.The first number
rsc/asscode for 4 micronsand greater particles,
the middle number indicatesthe classfor 6
mcronsand greater while the lastnumber is
the classfor 14 micronsand greater.At this
levelstickyor binding valvesshould
cleanliness
not be a problem and oil shouldbe in
condition for an extendedtime.
serviceable
Thismethod can alsobe usedto evaluate
contaminationcontrol systemsor filtersin a
system.
lUew oils: As surprisingas it may seem,most
oil purchasedtoday hasnot beenfiltered before
sold. Yes,it is newly refned and looks
translucent,but it hasmany more particlesthen
would be expectedfrom new oil. Typically,new
oils being deliveredto customersare c/ass
22118116
and sometimesworse.Thisputs the end
usern a position of having to filter the oil
before it is put into serviceto assureit will not
causepremature wear on the machinery.

t,f
'F'

";i

MoreThan

Upto and lncluding

S c a l eN u m b e r

2s 0 0 0 0 0
25 0 0 0 0 0
13 0 0 0 0 0

B e t w e e n 2 0 0 0 0a n d 4 0 0 0 0 p a r t i c l e s 4
B e t w e e n 1 0 0 0 0a n d 2 0 0 0 0 p a r t i c l e s 6
B e t w e e n1 3 0 0a n d 2 5 0 0 p a r t i c l e s 1 4

Typical New Oil

aso22t21118
ExpectedPump Life: 2 years
8 0 0 0 l b s . o f d i r t m o v e st h r o u g h
pump per year.

H a r v a r dC o r p o r a t i o n

fs o 1 6 t 1 4 t 1 1
E x p e c t e dP u m p L i f e : 1 4 y e a r s
o f d i r t m o v e st h r o u g h
pump per year.

How big is a Micron?

(I,OOO times size)

Hum an Hair
.OO35 Inch
.O889 mm

t h a t t h e f i l t e r sd i d n o t r e m o v e a n d h a v e b u i l t
eear to the
u p t o a p o i n t o f c a u s i n ge x c e s s i vw
i n t e r n a l p a r t s o f t h e m a c h i n e .T h i s i s w h e r e
c o n t a m i n a t i o nc o n t r o l i n r e m o v i n gp a r t i c l e s
d o w n t o 1 m i c r o n w i l l m a k e a s i g n i fi c a n t
r e d u c t i o ni n t h e w e a r o f t h e m a c h i n e r ya n d
l e n g t h e nt h e s e r v i c el i fe o f t h e o i l .
A l t h o u g h p a r t i c u l a t e st h a t b r i d g e t h e m o v i n g
p a r t s d o c a u s ew e a r , t h i s i s n o t t h e o n l y h a r m
t h e s m a l l p a r t i c l e su n d e r 5 m i c r o n sc a u s e .
T h e s es l i g h t e rp a r t i c f e sr, e f e r r e dt o a s s i l t i n g
b u i l d u p i n t h e f l u i d , i n t e r f e r ew i t h p r o p e r
f u n c t i o n so f t h e f l u i d , a n d c r e a t ec o s t l yw e a r
o n m a c hi n e r y .

a
Micron
.OOOO39 lnch

SzeMatters

What is a rnicron? A micron is one millionth of

,
a m e t e r .T o p u t t h i s i n a v i s u a l r e f e r e n c e a
t y p i c a l h u m a n h a i r i s a b o u t 7 5 m i c r o n st h i c k
a n d t h e u n a i d e dh u m a n e y e c a n s e e d o w n t o
a b o u t 4 0 m i c r o n s .T h e i n d i v i d u a lp a r t i c l e so f
s m o k ef r o m a c i g a r e t t ea r e a b o u t o n e m i c r o n i n
s i z e .W e c a n s e e t h e s e o n l y b e c a u s et h e r e a r e
so manyof them together.
F i l t e r sa r e d e s i g n e dt o r e m o v e p a r t i c l e st h a t
. ith
c a n a n d w i l l c a u s ed a m a g et o m a c h i n e r yW
g r e a t e r p e r f o r m a n c ea n d s o p h i s t i c a t i o no f
t o d a y ' sm a c h i n e r y h, i g h e r c o n t a m i n a t i o n
c o n t r o l i s e s s e n t i a lB
. u t w h a t s i z e p a r t i c l e sw i l l
c a u s ed a m a g e ?W h a t i s t h e t h i c k n e s so f t h e o i l
t h a t s e p a r a t e st h e m o v i n g p a r t s ?
. T h e f i l m o f o i l t h a t s e p a r a t e st h e
e n g i n e r n g a n d c y l i n d e rw a l l i s
2-3 microns.
. The oil that is betweena spool
v a l v ea n d b o r e i s u s u a l l y
3-5 microns.
. T h e o i l l u b r i c a t i n ga s l e e v eb e a r i n g
w i l l p r o v i d e5 - 8 m i c r o nc l e a r a n c e .
T h e s en u m b e r st e l l u s t h a t s t a n d a r df u l l - fl o w
f i l t e r s w i l l n o t t a k e o u t n o r e l i m i n a t ep a r t i c l e s
t h a t c a u s ea n a b r a s i v eb r i d g e .T h i s b r i d g e o f
p a r t i c l e sc o n n e c t i n gt h e t w o s i d e sw i l l a l l o w
w e a r t o b o t h s u r f a c e sc, r e a t i n ge v e n m o r e
p a r t i c l e sT. h e m a i n r e a s o nw e c h a n g eo i l i n
m a c h i n e r yi s t o r e m o v es m a l l p a r t i c l e si n t h e o i l

The four functions of oil also help us

u n d e r s t a n dw h y i t i s i m p o r t a n t t o m a i n t a i n
h i g h c l e a n l i n e s sl e v e l s . C o n t a r n i n a t i o n
i n t e r f e r e sw i t h t h e s e f u n c t i o n si n t h e
followingways.
Clean: The abilityof the fluid to hold
p a r t i c l e si n s u s p e n s i o ni s l i m i t e d . O n c e t h e l i m i t
i s r e a c h e dt h e f l u d w i l l d e p o s i tt h e p a r t i c l e s
o n t o t h e m a c h i n e r y l,e a v i n gs l u d g ea n d v a r n i s h
o n t h e p a r t s .l t w i l l a l s o f u r t h e r r e d u c et h e
f l u i d ' sa b i l i t y t o c o o l .
C o o l : T h e o i l m o v e sh e a t f r o m t h e m a c h i n e ' s
h e a t g e n e r a t i n gl o c a t i o n st o a c o o l e r o r t h e
o u t e r c a s eo f t h e m a c h i n et o b e r a d i a t e dt o t h e
a t m o s p h e r eF
. l u i d sw i t h c o n t a m i n a t eb u i l d - u p
h a v e a r e d u c e dc a p a c i t yt o m o v e h e a t a n d a i d
i n c o o l i n g t h e m a c h i n ea s i t s h o u l d .
S e a l : T h e f i l m o f o i l t h a t s e a l st h e g a p
b e t w e e n t w o s u r f a c e sw i l l m a i n t a i nt h e s e a l i n g
i f t h e r e a r e n o p a r t c l e sb r i d g i n g t h e s e a l .l f
c o n t a m i n a n t sb r i d g e a n d l i f t t h e s e a l i n g
s u r f a c e sa p a r t , i t a l l o w sf l u i d o u t a n d
c o n t a m i n a n t si n . T a k e ,f o r e x a m p l e ,a s e a l i n a
h y d r a u l i cr a m . A s t h e r a m m o v e so u t p a s t t h e
s e a l ,t h e o i l i s s c r a p e do f f t h e s h a f t .w h e n t h e
r a m i s v i e w e d u n d e r a m i c r o s c o p et,h e s u r f a c e
l o o k s l i k e t h e p e a k sa n d v a l l e y so f a m o u n t a i n
r a n g e . E a c ho n e o f t h e s e v a l l e y si s a l o c a t i o n
w h i c h c a n l o d g e p a r t i c l e st h a t c a n b e d r a w n
i n t o t h e r a m a s i t i s r e t r a c t e d .A s t h e s m a l l
c o n t a m i n a n t sb u i l d , . p a r t i c l ecsa n s t a r t t o l i f t
t h e s e a l o f f t h e r a m a n d a l l o w l e a k a g ea n d
f u r t h e r c o n t a m i n a t eb u i l d - u p .T h e i n c r e a s ei n
c o n t a m i n a t i o n i, f a l l o w e d t o c o n t i n u e ,w i l l
w e a r o n t h e s e a l m a t e r i a la n d c a u s ep r e m a t u r e
f a l ur e .
Lubricate: The bridging action of the particles
i n t e r f e r e sw i t h l u b r i c a t i o n ,i n c r e a s i n gf r i c t i o n
b e t w e e n m o v i n g p a r t s ,w h i c h c a n l e a d t o
. h e q u a l i t yo f
h i g h e r e n e r g yc o n s u m p t i o nT
l u b r i c a t i o ni s r e d u c e da s c o n t a m i n a n t s
build up in fluids.

Summarv
systems,fluid
is usedto transmit
Hydraulic Syltems: Wthhydraulic
powerto components,
suchasmotorsand rams.Thefluidpasses
The
throughvalveswhichdirectthe oil to the workingcomponents.
higherthe systempressure,
the closerthe tolerances
thatthe
will needto maintain.Asa ramisextendedand retracted
a
components
is broughtintothe system.To
the naked
smallamountof contamination
it hasmany
eyethe ramlookssmoothbut if viewedundera microscope
peaksandvalleys.
thatcandropontothe cylinder
Therecanalsobe airbornecontamination
materialis
andbe drawnintothe oil pastthe seal.Thissmallparticulate
in the oil untilremovedby the filteror drainedat the next
suspended
(silting)
Asthe smallcontaminaton
buildsup it canbindor
servicing.
sensitive
to silting,the patented
stickvalves.Servovalvesareparticularly
wayto eliminatefailuredueto
HarvardFilterSystemis a costeffective
that havean
this.Vanepumpsand pistonpumpsarebothcomponents
A 3-5micronclearance
degreeof sensitivity
to contamination.
elevated
underpressure,
erodingthe
of the vanetip to housingputsparticles
in thesepumps
metallikea sandblaster.Thesmallclearances
necessitates
a needfor verycleanfluid,whichneedsto be cleanerthen
in
codesof 20 or greater.Components
mostnewoilswith ISOcleanliness
the systemshouldhavecodesof 17or less.

SystemComponent
S e r v oV a l v e
P r o p o r t i o n a lV a l v e
V a r i ab l e - di s p l a c e m e n t
Pumn

CartridgeValve
F i x e d - di s p l a c e m e n t
P i s t o nP u m p
Vane Pump
D r e s s u r eo r F l o w C o n t r o l
Valve
S o l e n i o dV a l v e
I S OC l e a n l i n e s C
s ode

T y p i c a lC l e a n l i n e s sS p e c i f i c a t i o n

o o
o

o
o o
o o
o
o

o
o
o
o
o
o

o
o
o
o

o
o
O

1 4 t 1 2 t 9 1 5 t 1 3 t 1 0 1 6 t 1 4 t 1 1 1 7t ' , t 5 t 1 21 8 t 1 6 t 1 3 1 9 1 1 7 1 1 420t18t1s

'.FE

-..

Ir{

I
i

L
T

G e a r S y s t e m s : G e a r o i l s p r o v i d e l u b r i c a t i o nw h i c h a l l o w s
g e a r t e e t h t o s l i d e p a s t e a c h o t h e r . T h e f l u i d a l s o k e e p st h e
s l i d i n gs u r f a c e sc o o l . C o n t a m i n a t i o ni n t h e o i l w i l l c a u s e
a b r a s i v eb r i d g i n g a n d w e a r o n t h e t e e t h s u r f a c e s ,
. x i d a t i o n( t h i c k e n i n g )o f t h e o i l
g e n e r a t i n gm o r e p a r t i c l e sO
d u e t o e l e v a t e dt e m p e r a t u r e si n t h e p r e s e n c eo f o x y g e n i s
a n i s s u et h a t m u s t b e c o n t r o l l e dt o k e e p g e a r o i l s
s e r v i c e a b l eC
. o n d e n s a t i o no r m o i s t u r ei n t h e o i l , e v e n i n
s m a l l a m o u n t s ,a c t s a s a c a t a l y s ti n o x i d a t i o n a n d t h e
f o r m a t i o n o f a c i d si n t h e o i l . B y f i l t e r i n g t h e o i l d o w n t o
1 m i c r o n a n d r e m o v i n gw a t e r i n t h e o i l , t h e l u b r i c a n tc a n
perform its f unctionbetter and longer.
llutomatic l?ansmissions: The function of this f luid is
t h r e e f o l d :a g e a r l u b r i c a n t ,a h y d r a u l i cf l u i d i n t h e t o r q u e
convertera
, n d a c o o l a n t .W h i l e e a c h f u n c t i o n i s b e s t
p e r f o r m e d a s a c l e a n f l u i d , t h e c l u t c h p a c k si n t h e s y s t e m
. a c ht i m e t h e
c o n t r i b u t ew e a r - p a r t i c l e cs o n t i n u a l l y E
c l u t c h e se n g a g e ,t h e r e i s a s l i d i n g m o t i o n w h i l e t h e
p r e s s u r ei n c r e a s e tso f i n a l e n g a g e m e n t .W h e n t h e c l u t c h
p a c k i s r e l e a s e da g a i n , i t w i l l d e p o s i t p a r t i c l e si n t o t h e
f l u i d . l f t h i s c o n t a m i n a t i o ni s a l l o w e d t o b u i l d u p i n t h e
f l u i d , i t w i l l w e a r o n t h e g e a r s ,e r o d e t h e v a n e so f t h e
torque convertera
, n d a c c e l e r a t et h e w e a r o f t h e c l u t c h
p a c k s .A l l t h i s i n a d d i t o nt o g e n e r a t i n ge l e v a t e dh e a t .
A d d i n g a k i d n e y l o o p f i l t r a t i o n s y s t e mt o r e m o v e p a r t i c l e s
w h i l e s t i l l s m a l l ,h a s b e e n s h o w n t o s i g n i f i c a n t l yi n c r e a s e
t h e l i f e o f t h e s et r a n s m i s s i o n s .
E n g i n e s : E n g i n eo l p r o v i d e sl u b r i c a t i o nt o a l l t h e s l i d i n g
p a r t s o f t h e e n g i n e ;s e a l i n gb e t w e e n t h e r i n g a n d t h e
c y l i n d e rw a l l , c o o l i n gt h e p i s t o n s ,a n d k e e p i n gt h e
c o m p o n e n t sc l e a n .T h i s i s a d e m a n d i n gs e r v i c ef o r e n g i n e
o i l . T he 2 - 3 m i c r o n g a p b e t w e e n r i n g a n d c y l i n d e rw a l l
p r o v i d e sa s e a lt o k e e p c o m b u s t i o ng a s e sf r o m t h e
c r a n k c a s eA. s t h e c o n t a m i n a t i o nb u i l d s ,p a r t i c l e sw i l l w e d g e
b e t w e e n t h e t w o s u r f a c e sa n d b r e a k t h e o i l s e a l a l l o w i n g
c o m b u s t i o np r o d u c t b l o w - b y a n d i n c r e a s i n go i l u s a g e .T h i s
a l s o w i l l i n c r e a s et h e w e a r t o t h e s u r f a c e sd u e t o t h e
a b r a s i v eb r i d g i n g .T h e c o n t a m i n a t i o nb r i d g e a l s o c r e a t e s
w e a r o n t h e b e a r i n g s u r f a c e sc, a m s h a f t ,a n d g e a r s .
T h e a d d i t o no f a s e c o n df i l t e r l o o p , c a p a b l eo f r e m o v i n g
m o i s t u r ea n d p a r t i c u l a t em a t t e r u n d e r 1 m i c r o n i n s i z e ,h a s
p r o v e nt o i n c r e a s eo i l s e r v i c el i f e a n d r u n n i n g t i m e
of an engine.

D i e s e l F u e l s : A s d i e s e le n g i n e sa r e f o r c e d
t o r e d u c ep o l l u t i o n e m i s s i o n sp, r e s s u r ei n
t h e f u e l d e l i v e r ys y s t e mh a s g o n e u p
s u b s t a n t i a l l yS. o m ee n g i n e sa r e p r o d u c i n g
3 0 , 0 0 0p o u n d s o f p r e s s u r ea t t h e i n j e c t o r
t i p t o d e l i v e rc l e a n e rc o m b u s t i o ni n t h e
c y l i n d e r sa n d b e t t e r f u e l e c o n o m y .A t t h e
s a m et i m e , t h e f u e l m u s t h a v e s u l f u r
r e m o v e dw h i c h l o w e r st h e l e v e l o f
l u b r i c a t i o nt o t h e m o v i n g p a r t s .M o s t f u e l s
t o d a y a r e d e l i v e r e dt o t h e t a n k w i t h I S O
g r a d e s1 9 / 1 8 1 1 o6 r a b o v e .A d d i t i o n a l l y ,
water in the f uel will promotealgae
g r o w t h i n t h e t a n k s a n d i f a l l o w e dt o b e
p u m p e d i n t o t h e i n j e c t o rc a n c a u s e
c a t a s t r o p h i cf a i l u r e .
T h e c o m b i n a t i o no f h i g h p r e s s u r e sr,e d u c e d
l u b r i c a t i o n , a n d c o n t a m i n a t i o ni s f o r c i n g
c o m p a n i e st o r e a l i z et h e i r n e e d f o r
c o n t a m i n a t i o nc o n t r o l o f t h e f u e l b e f o r e
d e l i v e r i n gf u e l t o t h e e n g i n e .S i m i l a rt o
h y d r a u l i cs y s t e m st ,h e n e e d f o r c o n t a m i n a t i o n
c o n t r o l i n f u e l s y s t e m si s j u s t a s c r i t i c a l .
C l e a n e rf u e l r e d u c e sw e a r o n t h e e x p e n s i v e
a n d s e n s i t i v ef u e l i n j e c t o r p a r t s
m a i n t a i n i n gp e a k p e r f o r m a n c ea n d
d e l i v e r i n gb e t t e r f u e l e c o n o m y .I n a d d i t i o n ,
u s i n g a c o n t a m i n a t i o nc o n t r o l s y s t e mp r i o r
t o p u m p i n g f u e l i n t o t h e e n g i n et a n k
r e d u c e sf i l t e r p l u g g i n g , i m p r o v e sf u e l
sowntime.
s y s t e ml o n g e v i t y ,a n d d e c r e a s e d