What is Gas Spring? How it works?

As the name implies, the product is Nitrogen gas filled and performs like a compression spring. The spring consists of a piston rod attached to a piston and valve assembly moving within a sealed cylinder containing nitrogen gas at a certain predetermined pressure. The output force is the result of the differential force along the piston due to area difference. Compression type gas spring act like a standard metallic coil spring with lots of added advantages, like smooth opening and closing operation, almost flat curve characteristic, easy mounting and less maintains, flexibility in design, long life, high starting force, less force transferred on mounting hinges and compact design, to name a few of them.

The small quantity of oil incorporated in the cylinder provides extra cushioning at the end of the stroke thereby reducing the end jerk and load on the hinges.

These gas springs are available in two major types, non lockable and lockable. Non lockable gas springs ( Gasolift ) are in extended condition when not loaded. These are mainly used in easy lifting and lowering of equipment. Intermediate positive locking along the stroke is not possible. Lockable gas springs ( Gasoblock and Gasohite ) can be positively locked in any position along the length of the stroke. A valve mechanism is incorporated which effects in locking condition at any position along the stroke of the gas spring. Gasoblock gas springs are having a valve in the piston rod and can be operated by a valve actuating mechanism through the piston rod. In this type of gas spring there are three different types, mainly spring blocking, rigid blocking in extension and rigid blocking in compression. These are mainly used in passenger seats, hospital furniture and office chairs. Gasohite gas springs are having a valve in the tube assembly and can be operated from the top of the cylinder. These are mainly used for variety of chairs for height adjustment and revolving.

Operating Temperature Range

The gas springs are designed and manufactured to withstand continuous temperature of -20 degree centigrade to +80 degree centigrade. An exposure to 100 degree for a period of half an hour continuous is permissible. BALAJI can supply gas springs for lower and higher temperatures than specified on special request. The range is from -40 to + 120 degree centigrade.

Installation Instructions The gas springs should be mounted with piston rod in down condition so as to ensure seal is dipped in oil during maximum of its working life. For rigid lockable gas springs, they can be mounted in any position. Avoid paint, welding spatters, thinner, dust etc. on the piston rod. Preferably gas spring should be mounted lastly during assembly. Avoid or minimize side loading on the piston rod. Ensure that the mounting pins in the eyelet type end mounting are free enough and well lubricated to avoid side loading on rod during operation. Ensure that the ball pins for the ball joint type mounting are properly tightened in the bracket to avoid loose pin and play. Do not heat or open the gas springs. For Gasohite gas springs, ensure proper taper fitment of mating top and bottom parts of the chair to avoid play and side loading. For Gasoblock and Gasohite gas springs, ensure that the valve actuator is not pre loaded and a gap of minimum 1 mm exists between valve actuator and the actuating lever. Dispose the gas springs as per the manufacturer's instructions only.   Material Safety Balaji cares for the Environment. Gas spring should be disposed off as per the following procedure. Leak the high pressure gas by drilling a hole at 2mm diameter in tube. Ensure to leak the gas from both the component of springs. Ensure that the piston rod is freely moving in the tube. Open the gas spring by machining between the ends on turning centre. Remove all the parts and clean thoroughly The metallic (Steel) part can be scrapped by damaging the same to avoid misuse. The plastic parts can be delivered for recycling. The rubber parts and oil should be destroyed as per the local municipal regulations.   Advantages of Gas Springs Smooth opening and closing operation : The unique design of piston and valve assembly and nitrogen gas, provides damped extension or smooth and effortless opening and no damping or easy closing of any cover or lid. The small quantity of oil incorporated in the cylinder ensures proper lubrication to seal and in addition the damping effect at the end of the stroke. This cushioning at the end of the stroke provides jerk less opening. Almost flat curve characteristic : Unlike coil spring, the gas spring exhibits the high force right from the beginning of the stroke. It means there is no necessity to compress the spring to get required force, like a coil spring. The force versus stroke curve is almost flat. Please refer following graph. This unique feature of gas spring made the application engineer's job very easy. Easy mounting and No maintenance Less force on mounting hinges Flexibility in Design : In a particular combination of tube and piston rod diameter, one can get different forces by changing the gas pressure. Please see the specification chart. The spring characteristic (F2/F1) can also be changed to suit the application by varying oil quantity. For certain applications one need comparatively high force at the beginning of the opening and less force at the end of the stroke. The same can be achieved by various methods in gas springs. Compact Design Aesthetically good looking Long Life : Depending on the application and operating conditions, gas springs can exhibit a life of three to seven years. Available in different colors to suit the application.