Dynamic characteristics evaluation of balance valve for seawater hydraulic variable ballast system considering the depth variation

ABSTRACT

A seawater hydraulic variable ballast system (SHVBS) is used to dynamically adjust the weight of the submersible. The balance valve is a crucial component of SHVBS which has two working conditions called charging and discharging process. In this paper, an experiment simulating the ocean is built to obtain the dynamic characteristics of the balance valve, including the starting pressure and the pressure difference. Then there are analyzed by a kinematic model. The results show that as the depth increases, the pressure difference increases during charging process, while it remains unchanged during discharging process. Charging process is much worse than discharging process for balance valve. When the depth is 600 metres, the pressure difference during charging process is 45 times higher than during discharging process. Furthermore, friction force is the main factor that affects the starting pressure, while the hydraulic force mainly affects the pressure difference.

KEYWORDS:

• Submersible
• seawater hydraulic variable ballast system
• balance valve
• dynamic characteristic

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China: [Grant Number 52075192 & 52122502]; China Coal Science and Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fund: [Grant Number 2019-TD-2-CXY005].

Notes on contributors

Zhenyao Wang

Zhenyao Wang received the B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Northeastern University, Shenyang, China, in 2017, and the M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China, in 2020. He is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree with the School of the Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His current research interests include water hydraulic components and systems and electro-hydraulic proportional control.

Yinshui Liu

Yinshui Liu received the B.S. and M.S degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Lanzhou University of Technology, Lanzhou, China, in 1995 and 1998, respectively, and the Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China, in 2002. From 2002 to 2004, he was a Post-Doctoral Researcher with the College of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. In 2004, he joined the School of the Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, where he has been a Professor, since 2009. He is currently the Director of the Department of Fluid Power Control Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His current research interests include water hydraulics components and system, water mist technology, marine mechatronic systems, and hydraulic systems.

Qian Cheng

Qian Cheng received the B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, China, in 2016. He is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree with the School of the Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His current research interests include water hydraulic components and systems.

Hao Pang

Hao Pang received the B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Wuhan University of Technology, Wuhan, China, in 2016. He is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree with the School of the Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His current research interests include water hydraulic components and systems.

Yunxiang Ma

Yunxiang Ma received the B.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Chang’an University, Xi’an, China, in 2019, and the M.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China, in 2022. His current research interests include water hydraulic components and systems and electro-hydraulic proportional control.

Shendan Zhao

Shendan Zhao received the M.S. degrees in System Engineering from the Shizuoka Institute of Science and Technology, Shizuoka, Japan, in 2018. He is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree with the School of the Mechanical Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His current research interests include Mine plunger pump and clearance sealing technology.

Wei Wang

Wei Wang received the M.S. degrees in Mechanical Engineering from the Shandong University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, China, in 2006. His current research interests include water hydraulic components and coal mine hydraulic technology.

Defa Wu

Defa Wu received the Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China, in 2014. He was a Post-Doctoral Researcher with the College of Materials Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. He is currently a Associate Professor with the Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His current research is in dynamic control, underwater work tools, special hydraulic system, and industrial automation. His research in these areas builds on a large body of studies he pursued over the past 10 years.