How to Choose the Right Tube Size

Are you in need of industrial tubing for an upcoming project? One of the issues you’ll need to contend with as you make your purchase is the size of tubing you’ll need for the job.

There are a lot of factors to consider in making this decision. Here’s a quick overview of some of the most important things to think about when it comes to hydraulic and pneumatic tube sizes in San Jose, CA:

• Suction lift: Anytime you’re working with suction lift or pressure, that will need to be a factor in your decision making. In such an instance, choose a tubing with a thicker wall, so it is more capable of standing up to those suctions and pressure. Suction lift exists when you take a liquid from an open to atmosphere tank where the liquid falls below the pump suction’s centerline. Greater suction lift means a lower flow rate.
• Chemical compatibility: Depending on the kind of chemical or fluid that will be passing through the tubes, you might need to take chemical compatibility with the material of the tubing into account. There are chemical compatibility tables that make it easy for you to determine what types of chemicals certain tubing can and cannot handle, so use those tables as a reference when making your decision.
• Precision: Precision requirements will influence the type of tubing you purchase for your job. If you have a high precision requirement, you should select tubing that has smaller inner diameters so you can better meet the flow rate requirements to maintain that high precision. If you do not have a high precision requirement, you should select tubing that has a larger inner diameter so you can decrease the speed of the drive. This will help you to also decrease the wear of the tubing and extend its lifespan so you don’t have to worry about premature replacement.
• Pressure: Keep in mind that the tubing must bear the pressure in the system, so the thickness of the tubing will be important to consider. Thinner wall thickness in the tubing will bear less pressure, while tubing that has a larger inner diameter will bear less pressure than tubing that has a smaller inner diameter, even with the same wall thickness. The ability of tubing to bear pressure even in intermittent conditions is better than in constant conditions.
• Viscosity: The higher the viscosity of a liquid, the lower the flow rate. Make sure to select tubing with the flow rate and viscosity in mind.

It’s important to test out any tubing you select with the chemicals that will be flowing through them before using them on a larger scale in your production. The conditions of operation could very well influence you to make a different tubing choice.

For more information about pneumatic and hydraulic tube sizes in San Jose, CA and how to choose the right tubing for your project, we encourage you to contact Royal Brass Incorporated with any questions you have. We look forward to working with you to help you find the ideal solution for your application.

Categorised in: Tubes