UNIT 77

AIRCRAFT HYDRRAULIC SYSTEMS

OUTCOME 01
HYDRAULIC TRANSMISSION, HYDRAULIC FLUIDS AND PLUMBING

WEEK # 05
HYDRAULIC POWER SUPPLY SYSTEMS

CONTENTS:

5.1 INTRODUCTION
5.2 AIRCRAFT BASIC HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS
5.3 TYPES AND VARIATIONS OF BASIC HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS

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5.1 INTRODUCTION
Introduction to aircraft hydraulic power systems & components are discussed in the
week # 04 of this outcome. Here, elaboration has been made on the aircraft basic
hydraulic systems.

5.2 AIRCRAFT BASIC HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS

5.2.1 Basic Principle of an Aircraft Hydraulic System: An aircraft hydraulic
system will use a hydraulic fluid (i.e. a liquid) as the medium to transmit energy or
power from one or more source point(s) to several remote destination points.
Source point of power may be one or more of the following:

• An engine driven pump, attached to the main gear box extracting turbine shaft
power

• An electric pump driven by an electric motor extracting energy from electrical

power system

• A hand pump, converting operator’s muscle power

Destination points are the actuators that convert energy in the fluid into desired
work output like:

• Deflecting flight control surfaces,

• Applying landing gear brakes,

• Steering etc.
In other words: An aircraft hydraulic system is a fluid server that serves other
system’s hydraulically actuating components with hydraulic muscle power. Muscle
power, expressed in terms of the pressure is originated by system pumps and
converted into desired work output by actuators.
An aircraft hydraulic system, thus, utilizes basically:

• The principle of transmission of energy (or power) as expressed in the Pascal’s

Law and

• The principle of obtaining mechanical advantage expressed in Brahma

Principle
5.2.2 Basic Systems: Regardless of its function and design, every hydraulic system

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has a minimum number of basic components.
Figure 5.1 shows a basic hydraulic system with minimum number of basic
components.

Figure 5.1: Sasic Hydraulic system with hand pump.

The first of the basic components, the reservoir, stores hydraulic fluid.
A pump is necessary to create a flow of fluid. The pump shown in the Figure 1.5 is

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hand operated; however, aircraft systems are, in most instances, equipped with
engine-driven pumps as primary means of fluid flow.
The selector valve is used to direct the flow of fluid. These valves are solenoid-
actuated or manually operated through mechanical linkages.
The actuating cylinder converts fluid pressure into useful work by linear motion,
whereas, a hydraulic motor, where used, converts fluid pressure into rotary
mechanical motion. Note that the flow of fluid from the reservoir can be traced
through the selector valve to the right side of the actuator; fluid pressure forces the
piston of the actuator to the left as the fluid from the left side finds way in the return
line through the selector valve to drain to the reservoir.
The selector valve is moved to the opposite position to reverse the actuator
movement. Also the movement of the actuator piston can be stopped at any time by
moving the selector valve to the neutral. In the neutral position, all four ports are
closed and the actuator.
Piston is hydraulically locked with pressure trapped in both the working lines.

To make this system sufficient to work in the aircraft system, other components are
to be added with the minimum, basic components mentioned above. Figure 5.2
shows a basic system with the addition of a power–driven pump and filter, pressure
regulator, accumulator, pressure gage, relief valve as well as check valves.

A hydraulic system in a specific one application may vary from another in other
application in the same aircraft. Also the same system in one aircraft will not be
identical to that in another aircraft in layout or arrangement of components. However,
all hydraulic systems may commonly be considered as being made up of four main
sections:

(1) Power section comprising fluid storage tank or reservoir, hydraulic accumulator,
pumps, etc.

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 Figure 5.2: Sasic Hydraulic system with power pump & other components.

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(2) Control section comprising different pressure control components and flow
control complements.

™ Pressure Control components:

• Compensators

• Pump unloading mechanism

• Cut out valve

• Relief Valve

• Priority valve or Pressure maintaining valve

• Pressure reducing valve and so on.

™ Flow Control Components:

• One way valve/Non-return valve

• Restrictor valve

• Shuttle valve

• Sequence valve

• Selector valve and so on.

(3) Fluid distribution section comprising plumbing components like

pipes/conduits/hoses, fittings, filters and so on to carry/circulate/distribute fluid
within circuits and to/from circuits.

(4) Actuating section comprising principally hydraulic jacks or hydraulic motors to

actuate the appropriate system or services e.g. landing gears, flaps, powered
flight control surfaces etc.

The power section or the “power circuit” with its components supplies fluid to and

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accommodates the fluid returned from the rest of the circuit. It varies with the type of
aircraft and may contain more than one engine-driven pump.

The Power Circuit may be:

• Self-idling, or

• Non-self-idling

depending upon whether the pump is constant pressure type or constant delivery
type respectively.

In the self-idling circuit, the pump is designed to “idle” when the working pressure
has been achieved. Pump contains a compensating device to keep output
pressure of the pump constant. In the non-self-idling circuit, the pump supplies fluid
continuously and necessitates the installation of an automatic cutout valve to unload
the pump when working pressure is reached.

5.3 TYPES AND VARIATIONS OF BASIC HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS

5.3.1 General: Hydraulic system is essentially the same as far as basic components
and their functions are concerned. But yet, basic layout and arrangements may be
different. There are two of the basic types of hydraulic systems in that aspect:

• Open centre system

• Closed Centre system

5.3.2 Open Centre System: (Figure 5.3): Open centre hydraulic circuit operates
with open-centre-selector valves.
The main advantage of this system is its simplicity, and the main disadvantage is
that only one service can be operated at a time. When no services are being
operated, the pressure in the system is at a low value, pump output passing directly
to the reservoir. Figure 5.3 shows a simple open-centre system which contains all
the components necessary for operation. It should be noted, however, that when the
actuator reaches the end of its travel, pressure will build up and remain at the relief

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valve setting until the selector is returned to neutral. This imposes a high load on the
pump, which is normally overcome by fitting automatic-return selectors.

Figure 5.3: Open Centre System

5.3.3 Closed Center System: Closed centre hydraulic circuit operates with closed-
centre-selector valves (See Figure 5.4)
With this type of system, operating pressure is maintained in that part of the system
which leads to the selector valves, and some method is used to prevent over-loading
the pump. In systems which employ a fixed volume pump, an automatic cut-out valve
is fitted, to divert pump output to the reservoir when pressure has built up to normal
operating pressure. In other systems a variable volume pump is used, delivery being
reduced as pressure increases, whilst in some simple light aircraft systems,
operation of an electrically-driven pump is controlled by a pressure-operated switch.
A simple closed system is illustrated in Figure 5.4.

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 Figure 5.4: Closed Center System

5.4 SINGLE AND MULTIPLE HYDRAULIC SYSTEM

5.4.1 General A single hydraulic system has a single or more pumps with adequate
components and power the services. System layout is as shown in the basic system
diagrams. Small aircraft, specially the single engined aircraft utilizes this type of
hydraulic system where each component is taking the service of the same, single
system.
Modern aircraft with multiple engines uses multiple hydraulic system consisting of
more than one physically separate and independent hydraulic systems.

5.4.2 Multiple Hydraulic System: Multiple systems are designated as system 1, 2,

3…. or blue, green. Yellow… etc. Each system has its own reservoirs and every
other component including indicating system.
Essential services like primary flight controls receive supply from each of the multiple
systems interdentally and at the same time, although a single system is good
enough to actuate each service in this category.
The system requires many other components in addition to the basic components

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like standby electric pumps, emergency Ram Air Turbine Pumps, hand pumps as
well as Power Transfer Units (PTUs) or Reversible Motor Pumps etc.

5.4.3 Typical multiple Hydraulic System/Large Aircraft Hydraulic

Systems:
In figure 5.5 we have the block diagram of a e jet transport aircraft hydraulic system.
You will notice that this aircraft has a utility system and an auxiliary system. The fluid
for the utility system is supplied from the utility reservoir, and the pressure is
produced by two engine-driven pumps. These pumps are of the variable
displacement type, and therefore they do not require a pressure regulator; but they
do have a return line back into the reservoir. An accumulator holds the pressure on
the system and a relief valve is installed to bypass fluid back into the reservoir if
there should ever be a malfunction in the pumps that would produce too much
pressure in the system.
This utility system provides the pressure to raise and lower the landing gear, to
operate the brakes, the flaps, and the outboard spoilers; and to provide for centering
the nose wheel as it is being retracted. You will notice that when the landing gear is
down, pressure for nose wheel steering is provided by this system, and when the
landing gear is retracted, the brakes are automatically applied to stop the wheels
spinning before they enter the wheel wells.
The auxiliary system consists of two reservoirs and two AC electrically driven
hydraulic pumps and one DC electric motor-driven service pump. Both AC pumps
can supply pressure to the rudder, and pump number one also supplies pressure to
the inboard spoilers and the cargo door. And through an interconnect valve, it can
supply pressure to the landing gear. Pump number two can supply the brakes
through an interconnect valve.

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 Figure 5.5 : Block diagram of a hydraulic system of a large jet transport
airplane

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Outcome 1 Unit level: 3 15-02-2008
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