🔍 Key Concepts

• Hydraulic reservoir design and why baffles are used • The meaning of free surface effect in a tank or reservoir • How oil flow path and velocity affect cooling and heat removal

💭 Think About

• Think about what happens to the oil as it returns to the reservoir — is fast, direct flow back to the pump desirable or undesirable? Why? • How would a physical barrier (baffle) inside the reservoir change the motion of the oil surface and the temperature of the oil? • Does a baffle primarily control stability (like in a ship’s tank), temperature, air removal, or something else in a small hydraulic reservoir?

✅ Before You Answer

• Clarify what free surface effect usually refers to in naval architecture and whether that same concern is significant in a compact hydraulic reservoir. • Decide whether slowing/redirecting oil flow through the reservoir would generally help or hurt heat dissipation. • Ask whether the main reservoir design goal is to reduce free surface, promote cooling, allow air and contaminants to separate, or some combination of these.