Teachers Notes: Hydraulics Level: 5

th
and 6
th
Classes



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National Centre for Technology in Education 2004



Teachers' Notes: Hydraulics
by Tom McCloughlin


Curriculum Context: Refer to the NCCAs Science Curriculum p87.


Strand: Energy & Forces


Strand Unit: Forces


Curriculum Descriptors:
Identify and explore how objects and materials may be moved
o Using trapped liquid pressure (hydraulics)
o Using trapped air pressure (pneumatics)


Linkage: Properties & Characteristics of Materials > Recognise that materials can
be in solid, liquid or gas form
Properties & Characteristics of Materials > Identify how materials are
used > Relate the properties of the materials to its use (e.g.,
compressibility)


Curriculum Integration:
Mathematics Proportionality


Hydraulics Facts:
Refer to the Factsheet on the Sci-Spy website (www.sci-spy.ie).


Using the Sci-Spy DVD in Class:
The Hydraulics programme on the DVD focuses on the everyday application of hydraulics in
our world. JCB machinery is one very tangible example of hydraulic pressure in action. In a
JCB, there is oil in the steel containers called rams and when this oil is compressed the arms
of the JCB have the power to lift very heavy objects.

The first investigation shown on the DVD illustrates a simple sensory way of experiencing the
forces involved in hydraulic pressure. When you compress the liquid, the force or push is
transmitted through the liquid to the other side.
(If the same activity is done with just air in the syringe and tube, not liquid, the children
will be working with pneumatics not hydraulics.)

The second investigation introduces numbers to the concept of hydraulics. The 2 children
add weights on top of a syringe containing liquid. The liquid in the syringe becomes more
compressed, i.e., it fits into a smaller space. This demonstrates that (1) liquid is
compressible and (2) the more weight added, the greater the compression of the liquid. So,
Teachers Notes: Hydraulics Level: 5
th
and 6
th
Classes



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National Centre for Technology in Education 2004



the two are proportional. Hence, the greater the return force when the compressing force
is released. The force within the compressed liquid is used to do work.
(Remember, a science stand has been used here simply for convenience, it is not actually
necessary.)



Developing the Lesson:
Observation: When I push down the plunger of one syringe, the other plunger is pushed up.
(The above observation relates to the set-up shown in the DVD two liquid-
filled syringes connected with tubing)

Questioning/Predicting:
What happens when you continue pushing in the plunger? What happens when
you stop the other plunger from moving but keep pushing the first plunger?
(The more the plunger is pushed in, the more the other plunger is pushed
out. If the second plunger is held in place, it will become difficult to push
the first plunger, the liquid will seem to push back)

Investigating/experimenting:
Experience the pressure in air- or fluid-filled tubes with syringes at either
end.
(Be sure to start with one plunger in one syringe pulled fully out)

Analysing: A push in one syringe results in movement of the other syringe.


Interpreting: Using this system, compressed air/fluid can be used to move objects at a
distance from the user.



Extension Activities:
Design and make your own JCB with syringes and tubes incorporated into the design to utilise
hydraulics or pneumatics.


ICT Possibilities:
Connect a data-logging pressure sensor to a tube in a pneumatic system and quantify the
pressure in the tube when the syringe is pressed in.


Relevant Scientists:
1. Archimedes (287-212 B.C.) --- Greek mathematician who reasoned that a body
immersed in a fluid experiences an upthrust equal to the weight of the displaced
liquid. Archimedes also invented the catapult, the lever, the compound pulley, and
the burning mirror (a system of mirrors that burned the boats and ships of invading
armies by focusing the sun's rays).
http://scienceworld.wolfram.com/biography/Archimedes.html
http://www.shu.edu/projects/reals/history/archimed.html

2. Simon Stevin (1548-1620) -- Dutch/Belgian mathematician whose work in the area
of fluid mechanics - the first in this field since Archimedes - showed that the
Teachers Notes: Hydraulics Level: 5
th
and 6
th
Classes



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National Centre for Technology in Education 2004



pressure exerted by a liquid upon a given surface depended on the height of the
liquid and the area of the surface.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/stevin_simon.shtml

3. Blaise Pascal (1623 - 1662) --- French mathematician whose theoretical work laid
the foundation for modern hydraulics. Pascal's Law states that when pressure is
applied to any part of an enclosed liquid the pressure is distributed equally to all
parts of the liquid.
http://www.classicallibrary.org/pascal/
http://www.trinityprep.org/MAZZAR/PhysicalSci/History/blaise_pascal.htm




Relevant Websites:
1. Buoyancy Brainteasers --- Hydraulic pressure is directly related to buoyancy and this
PBS website has great questions and explanations for teacher and student alike.
Includes ideas for class activities.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/lasalle/buoyancy.html

2. Anatomy of a Jet-liner/Car Brakes ---Two links with information about how
hydraulics are involved in car brake systems and plane landing gear operation.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/escape/timecar.html
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/aircrash/jetl-nf.html