Suitability of Test Procedures for Determining the Compatibility of Seal Materials with Ionic Hydraulic Fluids

The compatibility of seal materials with the working fluid is crucial for the flawless, energy-saving, environmentally sustainable, and safe operation of any technical system. This is especially true for hydraulic systems operating under high operating pressure. The problem of materials compatibility comes into play when either a new type of seal material or a new type of fluid comes into use. The paper discusses the research findings regarding material compatibility testing of new high-tech ionic hydraulic fluids with commonly used seal materials. Due to the completely different chemical composition of these new fluids compared to the classical mineral-based oil, for these fluids, there are no standardized testing procedures. In these cases, we can only lean on the Standards that apply to classical fluids, which can lead to incorrect results. In the forefront of the paper is the discrepancy between the results obtained by the standardized test, and the test under real operating conditions. FKM, an excellent material for seals, proved to be the most suitable in the case of using ionic hydraulic fluid, according to a standardized test. However, it failed in the comparison test under real operating conditions, as the cylinder leaked. NBR seals proved to be a better solution.