At least once a week I get a call about our line of Super Air Amplifiers regarding increasing the air pressure on a compressed air system. Well, the Super Air Amplifiers are perfect at increasing the volume of air you exhaust into an application by increasing the output air flow through entrainment of ambient air along with the primary compressed stream! So, they will increase volume for exhausting to atmosphere, but they do not increase your compressed air system pressure for an application.
But, let’s break the two things down a little further!
EXAIR Super Air Amplifiers!
EXAIR Air Amplifiers are a low-cost way to move air, smoke, fumes and light materials. These Air Amplifiers use the Coanda effect to create a low pressure area which draws in surrounding air to efficiently deliver a high volume of air to a target. Using a small amount of compressed air as their source, Air Amplifiers are among the most efficient products within EXAIR’s entire product line. EXAIR Air Amplifiers will create output flows up to 25 times their air consumption rate and deliver it at a high velocity. The entrainment of outside air amplifies the total volume of air at the output, which also increases force, cooling ability and circulation.
EXAIR’s Air Amplifiers have no moving parts, assuring maintenance-free operation. Fine-tuning flow, vacuum and velocity are easily controlled by regulating the input pressure. For gross adjustment of air flow and vacuum an internal shim is used to increase or decrease the internal “air gap” that the compressed air flows through. Both the vacuum and discharge ends of the Air Amplifier can be ducted, making them ideal for drawing fresh air from another location, or moving smoke and fumes away from an application.
Pressure Boosters
When folks first call in about Air Amplifiers, they generally have in their mind the concept of a pressure booster. Pressure boosters, by comparison, are completely different and are typically more complex systems involving motors or air cylinders in conjunction with feedback and operation controls. Their main job is to increase a baseline pressure in a system to keep low pressure situations from occurring within high value systems or for an unusual case of a pneumatic application that requires pressure higher than the facility, system pressure. For example, in robotic spray booths, the robots and valves require 50 PSIG but if they drop below 20 PSIG, the system can damage itself. A pressure booster can be installed to keep lower pressure systems maintained at a higher pressure for application needs. The systems on which pressure boosters are used tend to be more “closed loop” where a static pressure can be maintained. If a dynamic (moving) higher pressure is required for an application, a booster air compressor intended only for that application may be used to keep the entire facility pressure from having to be raised only to accommodate the one application.
It is my genuine hope that the above explanation regarding EXAIR Air Amplifiers versus air pressure amplifiers (Boosters) is helpful. If you have questions regarding EXAIR Intelligent Air Products please contact myself or one of our Application Engineers as we are always ready to help.
Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer
Send me an email
Find us on the Web
Like us on Facebook
Twitter: @EXAIR_JS