Moving Small Particles with a Heavy Duty Line Vac

June 26, 2017 — Lee Evans

The material in this hose is conveyed vertically over 7m using an EXAIR Heavy Duty Line Vac

The image above shows a test at a customer’s facility to move a small particulate to a height of 7m (23’) with an EXAIR Line Vac.  This particulate is used in the production of hand warmers and the end user needed a method to convey the material out of 55 gallon drums.

This same customer purchased a 2” Heavy Duty Line Vac from EXAIR in 2014 which is still in use and functioning well.  So, when it came time to find a pneumatic conveyance solution for this material, they knew where to go.

This is the material which needed to be pneumatically conveyed.

And, we knew just the questions to ask to determine the best Line Vac solution.  In order to do so, we had to determine the following:

  • Bulk density of the material
  • Size of the material
  • Conveyance height
  • Conveyance distance
  • Required conveyance rate
  • Available compressed air supply

Bulk density was rather low at 320kg/m³ (~20 pounds/ft³), with a particle size between 3-5mm (~1/8”-3/16”).  The conveyance height in this application was 5-7m (16.5-23ft.), with a distance of 1-2m (3.3-6.6ft) and a desired conveyance rate of over 4kg (8.8 pounds) per minute.

Testing with a 2″ Heavy Duty Line Vac

The customer ran a test with the 2” Line Vac they have on site and the results were excellent.  Their only question was whether they could achieve the needed conveyance with a smaller unit, thereby reducing compressed air consumption and operating cost of the application.

In this case the answer was clear that a smaller Line Vac could be used due to the low bulk density of the material.  By reducing the size of the Line Vac to 1”, or perhaps 1.5” we could reduce the compressed air consumption and still meet the required performance need.

EXAIR Line Vacs have, once again, brought a viable solution to this industrial facility.  If you have a similar application or would like to discuss pneumatic conveyance needs, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer.  We’ll be happy to help.

Lee Evans
Application Engineer

LeeEvans@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_LE

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PEEK Super Air Nozzles Resist Corrosion; Won’t Scratch Sensitive Surfaces

June 23, 2017 — Russ Bowman

Because they might be needed in some pretty aggressive environments, EXAIR offers many of our Intelligent Compressed Air Products in a variety of materials. One particular material of construction, however, has two distinct benefits. PEEK (Polyether Ether Ketone, for those of us who ruined the grading curve in CHEM102) plastic offers not only superior chemical corrosion resistance; it’s also non-marring. Since EXAIR introduced the first PEEK Super Air Nozzle in 2005, they’ve been specified all over the world; sometimes for their corrosion resistance; other times so they won’t mar or scratch sensitive surfaces…and every once in a while, for both.

I recently had the pleasure of discussing blow off applications with the production manager of a large anodizing & plating company. The chemicals used in these processes are extremely corrosive, and the equipment used in those areas has to be made of something that’ll handle it. PEEK plastic is just such a material. Also, once they’ve treated their customers’ parts, they need to handle them with care…they’re getting paid a premium to provide nice, shiny parts with a perfect finish. When they’re blowing them off, they need to use something that won’t scratch up the surface if the operator makes incidental contact with the blow off tip. Again, PEEK plastic is just such a material.  Since their existing blow offs were fitted to 1/8 NPT connections, they chose the Model 1102-PEEK Mini Super Air Nozzle.

EXAIR’s PEEK Super Air Nozzles can be mounted in place or on a Safety Air Gun, depending on your needs.

Corrosion resistant and non-marring…EXAIR offers our PEEK Super Air Nozzles in six sizes, from the Atto (M4x0.5 threads; 2.5 SCFM; 2 oz force applied) to our High Force Model 1104-PEEK (3/8 NPT threads; 35 SCFM; 1.9 lbs force applied) for an incredibly diverse range of applications.

If you’d like to discuss what material(s) of construction your application(s) require, give me a call.

Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
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Engineered Air Nozzles Reduce Noise Levels and Outlet Pressure, Meeting OSHA Requirements

June 22, 2017 — jsnicholl

“My operators are complaining that our air guns are too loud, how can you help me?” – is a very common inquiry we receive here at EXAIR on almost a daily basis. Many open end blowoffs or air guns fitted with nozzles that have cross drilled relief holes create high pitch wind shear, resulting in excessive noise levels, sometimes exceeding 100+ dBA. This not only is a safety concern but also an OSHA violation.

Variety of Air Nozzles that produce dangerously loud noise levels

Loud noises and the length of exposure time can lead to significant health concerns such as long term hearing loss, increased stress levels and potential injury due to lack of concentration. The Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) introduced Standard 29 CFR 1910.95(a) as a way to protect workers from job related injuries associated to potentially dangerous sound levels. Per the Standard, at 90 dBA an operator is limited to a maximum of 8 hours of constant exposure. As noise levels increase, the allowable exposure time decreases, in some cases slowing production, costing a company on their bottom line.

 

EXAIR’s Air Nozzles are engineered so they entrain surrounding air across the profile of the nozzle, which produces a smoother airflow, ultimately reducing wind shear, resulting in much lower sound levels, meeting the OSHA Standard.

Illustration showing the air travel of our Super Air Nozzles

 

In addition, our Air Nozzles also meet the OSHA Standard 1910.242(b) for 30 PSI dead end pressure. All of our engineered Air Nozzles provide a relief or a safe path for the air to exit if the nozzle were to be blocked or pressed against an operator’s body so the exiting air pressure will never reach 30 PSIG.

All of EXAIR’s Air Nozzles are available with standard NPT threads to easily adapt to existing air guns. We also off our full line of Safety Air Guns which are fitted with our engineered nozzles, providing an “off-the-shelf” OSHA compliant solution. For help selecting the best product to replace your existing device or if you have a new application you would like to discuss, give us a call at 800-903-9247.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN

 

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Super Air Knives Remove Water from Knee Replacement Parts

June 22, 2017 — Tyler Daniel

EXAIR’s Super Air Knives are the go to when you need to dry your parts as they’re traveling along a conveyor. The high velocity, laminar airflow from the Super Air Knife does a fantastic job of stripping away moisture, leaving your part dry for the next stage of the process. With models available in both 303 & 316 Stainless Steel, Aluminum, and polyvinylidene fluoride and at lengths ranging from 3″-108″, there’s a knife for every application.

I was recently working with a customer that manufactures knee replacement devices. He was designing a new blowoff station to eliminate having to have operators manually dry the parts after a washing operation. He created a test rig to test out his theory of using Super Air Knives. While conducting his tests, he was having issues completely removing the water from the parts. Due to some of the grooves and pockets, the underside was not drying in one pass. This led to him having to manually blow the parts off after they exited the basket. This would not be acceptable as the purpose was to remove the operator from this part of the process. After taking a look at some photos of the setup, I noticed that he had the knives angled so that the airflow was blowing perpendicular to the parts. In doing this, the amount of time that the part is exposed to the airflow is greatly reduced. In any blowoff application, maximizing the time & contact that the part has with the airflow is critical in maximizing effectiveness. By angling the knives so that the parts were exposed to the airstream just as they exited washing, he was effectively able to dry the parts in one pass.

Optimized-IMG_20170313_133531

Improper Positioning of Super Air Knives

We’re frequently contacted by customers who may have the right product for the application, but are not seeing the results they expected. EXAIR has a highly trained team of Application Engineers that are ready and waiting to help you optimize your installation. In addition, EXAIR offers an unconditional 30 Day Guarantee on all stock products. We want you to have an opportunity to test the product out in your application before committing to the purchase. In doing this, we have the unique opportunity to work with you as you troubleshoot the application. If you have an EXAIR product installed and still aren’t seeing the results you expect, give us a call. We’d be happy to look into your setup and determine if there’s anything that can be done to enhance the performance.

Tyler Daniel
Application Engineer

E-mail: tylerdaniel@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD

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Video Blog: Medium Vortex Tube Cooling Kit

June 21, 2017 — bsbergmann

EXAIR offers (3) Vortex Tube Cooling Kits, and the video below will provide an overview of the medium size offering, for refrigeration up to 2800 BTU/hr (706 Kcal/hr.)

If you have questions regarding Vortex Tube Cooling Kits or any EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air® Product, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or one of our Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution.

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

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EXAIR Electronic Flow Control: Phase 3 for improving medical devices.

June 20, 2017 — johnball2014

Medical Anatomy

As we started this journey on improving the processes with this medical device company, I wanted to touch base on one more area that EXAIR was able to help: Saving Money.  In the previous two blogs, I showed how EXAIR’s products helped the machining process by reducing scrap with the Stay Set Ion Air Jet (you can read it here: Phase 1) and by increasing production rates with the Mini Chip Vac (you can read it here: Phase 2).  But now I want to show you how EXAIR was able to save them money by reducing their compressed air usage; Phase 3.  Our goal at EXAIR is to use the least amount of compressed air to solve your process problems.  It costs a lot of money to make compressed air.  So, if you can reduce the amount being used, then your overhead costs are reduced.

Electronic Flow Control

A process with time delays or gaps is usually a candidate for wasting compressed air.  This is a hidden profit-reducing culprit that is not well recognized.  I like to correlate it to why the refrigerator light goes out when you shut the door.  When it is not required, then it shouldn’t be on.  With the previous discussions about the machining center, I did recognize that they did have time gaps in their process.  They could turn off the compressed air during loading and unloading of the parts to save money.  This may not seem like a lot of time, but during an 8 hour shift, it can really add up.  My suggestion was to use the Electronic Flow Control (EFC).

The EFC is a miniature PLC that controls a solenoid valve with 8 different timing sequences.  It utilizes a photo-sensing eye to trigger the timing cycle when it detects the part.  The timing is selectable from milliseconds to hours to optimize the on/off time of the solenoids.  I recommended the model 9055-2 which is an EFC that has two solenoids attached.  The customer attached one solenoid to the Mini Chip Vac and the other to the Stay Set Ion Air Jet.  They knew the timing sequence of the machining operation, so they were able to input that time into the EFC.  The photo-sensing eye was attached near the door of the machine to trigger the EFC.  Once the door was closed, the machining operation started as well as triggering the EFC.  This would turn on both solenoid valves to operate the Stay Set Ion Jet and the Mini Chip Vac.  When the operation was over, both of the EXAIR products would turn off.  This cycle would repeat for each operation throughout the day.  Since the EXAIR products do not have any moving parts, the instant on and off would not affect the operation of the EXAIR Stay Set Ion Air Jet and Mini Chip Vac.

With the addition of the EFC, they were able to project a savings of $6,000 a year, just by turning off the compressed air between cycles.  With a pay back of only 4 months, this was a nice bonus for the medical company, as this additional money was not appropriated.  Not only did they see their cost of operation reduced by less scrap and faster production rates; but, they could add this hidden gem of money right to the bottom line.  If you have stop gaps in your operation, you could get that added bonus to your profits by turning your compressed air off with the EFC.

John Ball
Application Engineer

Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

 

Photo: Muscles Anatomy Medical Human by Heblo/64 CC0 Public Domain

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Adding Atomized Water To A Starch Blending Application

June 19, 2017 — Lee Evans

Starch blending takes place at the top of this tower

The image above shows a material transfer process for starch.  At the top of the tower the starch rests inside of tumbling tanks (shown below) which blend larger pieces into small, finely blended particles.  In order to achieve the proper blend, an hydration level of 5% water must be maintained within the tank.  For the water introduced to the tank, the smaller the droplet size of the water particles, the better the blend.  The current setup in this application is to spray water directly into the tanks, by hand, using a pump sprayer.

These are the tanks at the top of the tower shown in the photo above

The investigation into droplet sizes led this customer to EXAIR Atomizing Nozzles, searching for a method to introduce small droplet water particles into the blending tanks.  The ultimate question was “How small of a particle size can we achieve with an EXAIR Atomizing Nozzle?”

The answer to that question can be found here on our website and in our catalog as well.  Our smallest confirmed droplet size is currently 22µm when using our 1/4″ NPT Siphon Fed Atomizing Nozzles, which was more than enough for this application.

Model SR1010SS EXAIR Atomizing Nozzle

By installing SR1010SS atomizing nozzles into this application this customer is able to achieve the required hydration level with small droplet size water particles.  These particles ensure proper blending of the starch and proper quality for the final product.  And, the atomizing nozzles prevent an operator from having to manually add the necessary water to achieve the required hydration in the blending tanks.

If you have a solution in need of an atomized liquid solution, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer.  We’re here to help.

 

Lee Evans
Application Engineer

LeeEvans@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_LE

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