If I were to tell you that I can take a supply of ordinary compressed air and drop it’s temperature by 50°F without any type of refrigerant or electrical connection, you might be scratching your head a bit. That is of course unless you’ve been introduced to the wild world of Vortex Tubes. My favorite product among the EXAIR Product Line, the Vortex Tube does just that. With an ordinary supply of compressed air as the sole power source, and no moving parts, the Vortex Tube converts that airstream into a hot and cold flow that exit from opposite ends of the tube. No magic, witchcraft, or wizardry involved here. Just physics!
EXAIR’s Vortex Tubes are a low-cost, reliable, and maintenance-free solution to a variety of industrial spot cooling problems. With just an ordinary supply of compressed air, the Vortex Tube produces two streams of air: one hot and one cold. The Vortex Tube is capable of achieving a temperature drop/rise from your compressed air supply ranging from -50°F to +260°F (-46°C to +127°C). Flow rates range from 1-150 SCFM (28-4,248 SLPM) and cooling capacities of up to 10,200 Btu/hr. With all Vortex Tubes constructed of stainless steel, they’re resistant to corrosion and oxidation ensuring you years of reliable, maintenance-free operation.
Two primary different styles of Vortex Tubes are offered: maximum refrigeration and maximum cold temperature. Tubes for maximum refrigeration have an “R” type generator installed. These tubes are optimal for most industrial applications. Model numbers containing 32XX all have an “R” generator installed. For “cryogenic” type applications such as cooling lab samples or circuit testing, the maximum cold temperature tubes are recommended. These tubes have a “C” type generator installed. Model numbers beginning with 34XX all are designed for maximum cold temperatures. The difference between the two is in the volume of air at the cold end. While the 34XX tubes deliver a colder temperature, there is much less volume of cold air.
All Vortex Tubes are adjustable. At the hot air exhaust side of the tube is an adjustable valve that controls the amount of air permitted to escape from the tube. The more air that exhausts from the hot end, the colder the temperature drop at the cold end. But, as more air escapes there’s less overall volume. Finding that balance between cold temperature and cold airflow volume is key to a successful application.
As we all know, if there’s a knob to turn, button to press, or adjustment that can be made an operator is inevitably going to tinker with it. Day shift will blame the night shift, night shift blames the day shift, and it can present a problem when the Vortex Tube has been specifically tested and set to achieve the desired cold fraction. If you know the cold fraction you need, but would prefer to prevent it from being able to be adjusted, EXAIR can install a precisely drilled hot plug to set the cold fraction percentage to your specifications and eliminate any potential for it to be changed.
If you’d still prefer to keep the adjustability, but don’t have the capabilities to measure and set it yourself, we can also set any Vortex Tube to the desired cold fraction with the adjustable valve and send it to you ready to be installed. We’ll provide you with a special model number so you can rest assured that any time you need another it’ll come set to your specification.
If you have an application in your facility that you believe is a nice fit for a Vortex Tube, give us a call. Our team of Application Engineers is standing by ready to help you determine the best solution for your application.
Tyler Daniel
Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@EXAIR.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD