Well, okay, it may not be 20,000 leagues, but 6,000 meters is still pretty impressive. With worldwide demand for oil, natural gas and minerals rising, and recent discoveries of sources located in the deep sea, new machinery will be needed to harvest these resources from increasingly harsh environments.
Rexroth is the first to adapt numerous standard components to fit the special requirements for deep-sea applications such as pressure compensation and corrosion protection to provide equipment with a longer maintenance-free life span and optimal performance.
In order to test its designs, Rexroth developed a Subsea test power unit equipped with a water-proof motor/pump assembly that can drive an axial piston motor and hydraulic cylinders via an encapsulated valve control. The hydraulic system comes in a pressure-compensated design. Rexroth tested the equipment in a unique pressure chamber facility, was able to demonstrate suitability of its hydraulic components to a depth of 6,000 meters below sea level.
