Maher Shehadi, an associate professor in Purdue Polytechnic's School of Engineering Technology, recently published the culmination of an eight-year research project detailing new methods to improve the efficiency and sustainability of industrial hydraulic systems.
The paper, "Immersion System Oil Filtration Improvement under Cyclic Pumping," appears in the International Journal of Experimental Design and Process Optimisation.
Shehadi's study investigates how cyclic pumping strategies affect an immersion system's ability to filter oil. The research demonstrates that using optimized "on" and "off" intervals during the pumping process significantly enhances particle removal. This strategic pacing also reduces pressure drop and extends the overall functional life of the filter.
These technical improvements offer direct benefits to industrial manufacturing companies. By implementing cyclic pumping, manufacturers can increase system reliability, reduce the frequency of mandatory maintenance, and improve long-term operational sustainability.
The published findings are the result of work that began in 2017. The project spanned two major development phases and was supported by two dedicated research grants to fund the required experimental validation.
Shehadi plans to expand on this foundational research in future projects. His upcoming work will focus on exploring adaptive control strategies, real-time diagnostics, and further sustainable system designs for industrial applications. For the moment, Shehadi said that this paper itself was “a journey-nearly 18 months from submission to final acceptance.”
“Persistence, rigorous experimentation and continuous refinement made this milestone especially rewarding,” Shehadi said.
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