Atomizing Nozzles: Identification and Versatility

Published on by John BallLeave a comment
Internal Mix Atomizing Spray Nozzles

I recently was contacted by a customer that had an application for spraying silicone.  They currently were using our Atomizing Nozzles, and they were impressed with the operation.  But they needed to change the spray pattern for a different application.  They had a variety of parts which required different spray angles and liquid amounts.  With the EXAIR Atomizing Nozzles, the air and liquid caps are interchangeable with the same body size.  So, you can change liquid flow rates, spray patterns, and even go from a pressurized liquid system to a siphon fed.  I created an informal video that shows how this can be done (click HERE).  To start, this customer did not know which model number that they were using.  So, I had to determine the size and type in order to make the proper changes. 

To do the “forensics”, we need to know a couple of things.  First, we need to find the inlet air and liquid port sizes.  EXAIR offers three sizes in NPT or BSP; 1/8”, 1/4”, and 1/2”.  Then we would need to know if it is a standard or No-Drip option.  This is easily found by looking at the top of the Atomizing Nozzle.  A standard option has the liquid stem valve that has a knurled adjustment knob; while the No-Drip option has a cylinder in place of the liquid stem valve.  From the photo below, they were using the standard option. 

AF1010SS

Since they were pumping the silicone solution to the Atomizing Nozzle, the next step was to look at the Liquid Cap and the Air Cap.  EXAIR stamps characters on each Liquid and Air Cap (reference photo below).  The Liquid Caps will only have numbers, and the Air Caps will combine letters and numbers.  From these details, I could determine that the customer was using a model AF1010SS Internal Mix Flat Fan Atomizing Nozzle. 

For their next application, they were looking to spray more of the silicone solution at a smaller target area.  I recommended the model AN1030SS.  By changing the air and liquid pressure in conjunction with adjusting the liquid stem valve, they could dial in the exact amount of silicone spray to not overuse it.  For this customer, I was able to recommended to just replace the liquid and air cap to change from the model AF1010SS to the model AN1030SS. 

If you have a liquid that you would like to spray evenly, efficiently, and effectively; EXAIR Atomizing Nozzles can do that for you.  For the customer above, they did not have to purchase new units as they could just swap out the caps to make the change.  This saved the company money and time as the bodies of the Atomizing Nozzles were already aligned to cover both parts.  If you would like know more about our Atomizing Nozzles and the features that they provide, you can contact an Application Engineer at EXAIR.  We will be happy to help. 

John Ball
International Application Engineer

Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

Eliminate Static on Hose, Tube, and Extruded Shapes w/ EXAIR’s Gen4 Super Ion Air Wipe!

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment
Gen4 Super Ion Air Wipe

This time of the year it is not uncommon to feel a slight shock after walking across a carpeted surface and touching a door knob. This little “jolt” is a result of fast-moving electrons leaping from your body to the door knob, or vice versa. As your feet shuffle across the surface of a rug or carpet, your body will either gain or lose electrons. Touching a conductive surface then causes these electrons to leap from one place to another.

When an atom gains or loses an electron, it affects the balance that occurs within an atom. If an atom gains an electron, it now has more electrons than protons. This results in a negatively charged atom. The opposite can be said if an atom loses an electron, it now carries a positive charge. This charge imbalance is where static electricity comes from. Both positive and negative charges will remain static until contacted by or in close proximity to a conductive or grounded surface.

Static can be a problem in many industries contributing to a range of different process problems. Common problems include: dust clinging to product, product clinging to itself, rollers, machine beds or frames, materials jamming or curling, sheet feeding problems, and hazardous sparks or shocks to operators.

For eliminating static on the surface of pipe, cable, extruded shapes, hose, or wire, look no further than EXAIR’s Gen4 Super Ion Air Wipe. The Gen4 Super Ion Air Wipe provides a uniform 360° ionized airstream and is available in both 2” and 4” ID sizes. Its clam-shell design makes it easy to clamp around a part for neutralizing static electricity and contaminants.

The high volume, high velocity airflow attaches itself to the surface and wipes it down with static eliminating ions. The airflow stays attached to the surface and is effective up to 15’ away from where it’s mounted. It’s lightweight and easy to mount using the ¼-20 tapped holes on the back or can also be held into place with just rigid pipe.

If you’d like to talk about how EXAIR can help solve the static problems in your facility, give us a call. With a wide range of Static Eliminators available to ship same day from stock you can consider these problems a thing of the past!

Tyler Daniel, Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@EXAIR.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD

Ion Air Cannon Keeps Paper Recycling Baler Working

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

One of the cruelest pranks I’ve ever been party to happened during my time in the United States Navy. All it took was:

  • A cigar box
  • A rubber band
  • The scrap “dots” from every 3-hole punch we could find

We cut the lid off the cigar box, filled it with the “dots,” used the lid and the rubber band to make a wind-up flapper that we stretched across the open top of the box, and carefully placed it in our Leading Petty Officer’s (LPO’s) desk drawer.  Then we waited for hilarity to ensue the next time he opened that drawer.

Unbeknownst to us, he was going to a pretty important meeting that morning, so he was wearing his Service Dress Blues (also known as “crackerjacks” – the dark wool one; not the white one on the popular snack mix box).  When he opened his desk drawer, the rubber band-powered flapper flung those little white paper dots all over him.  It was wintertime, in an office space with electric baseboard heat, so the static cling was heinous.  It took several of us with makeshift lint brushes fashioned from duct tape to get his uniform “shipshape” and presentable for the meeting.

I was reminded of this incident recently when I had the pleasure of helping a caller from a paper recycling plant, who was having a static problem in a baler, with, basically, large confetti-like pieces of shredded paper.  These shreds are pneumatically conveyed through a long 8-inch duct, where they picked up enough static to cling to the inside of the baler chute, and built up to a point where they covered the sensors that opened the chute.  This caused the chute doors to cycle without the chute being full, which triggered the baler to activate with nothing there.  The result from the operators was a lot of slamming, frustration, and cursing…which further reminded me of my LPO’s reaction to getting covered in paper dots.

While lint brushes (and duct tape, in a pinch) work just fine for removing statically charged debris from one’s clothing, the baler required a different solution…in the form of a pair of EXAIR Gen4 Ion Air Cannons.  These were installed to blow into the baler, from opposite walls just above the chute, and aimed slightly down towards the sensors.  This keeps the sensors clear until paper shred actually DOES fill the chute, allowing it to dump a whole bale’s worth of scrap, keeping the baler (and the operators) happy.

Whatever you needs, EXAIR has a Gen4 Static Eliminator product to solve your static problem.

Many industrial static charge problems have similarities to “real world” experiences that most of us are familiar with.  If you want to talk about static control, give me a call.

Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Industrial Housekeeping Promo: Free Vac-U-Gun

Published on by codybiehleLeave a comment

Are you in need of a new vacuum system or upgrade your new old system? Well now’s the time to do it! Starting March 1st, 2021 and running through May 31st, 2021, we are offering a free Vac-U-Gun system with any order of one of our Industrial Housekeeping Vacuum Systems. Our Vac-U-Gun system is a versatile tool that can help you clean up surfaces and transfer the material from point A to point B. The Vac-U-Gun can also be used as a powerful blow gun simply by unscrewing the generator and flipping it around. Best of all these units have no moving parts meaning they will run almost indefinitely and are maintenance free.

Vac-U-Gun System

Our industrial housekeeping products are designed to either handle dry solids or liquid.

If you need to handle solid material our Chip Vac system is the perfect choice. The system can handle both dry and damp material and transfer it into one of our standard open top steel drum (or use one of your own drums). If you are working with a heavier or abrasive material then look no further then the Heavy Duty Dry Vac which provides superior performance and abrasion resistance for use with materials as garnet, ground glass, blasting and tumbling media.

Chip Vac system From left to right: 5gal, 30gal, 55gal, 110gal

For your dustier applications we offer the Heavy Duty HEPA Vac system, which uses the same vacuum generator as the Heavy Duty Dry Vac but provides a higher level of filtration. The HEPA rated filter meets the requirements of 99.97% filtration at the 0.3 micron level.

Heavy Duty HEPA Vac system from left to right: 30gal, 55gal, 110gal

If liquids are what you need the Reversible Drum Vac system which can pump 55 gals in 90 secs is an good choice. The Reversible Drum Vac also comes in a High Lift version which can be used to pump liquids that have a much thicker viscosity and move liquids up to 15’ deep. When it comes filtering out solids from your liquid we also have the High Lift Chip Trapper and the Chip Trapper system. The Chip Trapper systems allow you to filter out solids suspended in the liquid; this is perfect for filtering out chips from your coolant tanks for machining.

Chip Trapper System from left to right: 30gal, 55gal, 110gal

If you need to clean up both liquids and solids, choose our new EasySwitch Wet-Dry Vac system. The EasySwitch allows you to easily switch the unit from being able to vacuum up solids to being able to suck up liquids (hence the name). All you have to do is remove the HEPA filter from the latch on the lid. There are no tools involved, no springs or cumbersome closures. Switch from liquids to dry materials in less than 15 seconds.

The New EasySwitch Wet-Dry Vac system

If you have any questions about compressed air systems or want more information on any of EXAIR’s products, give us a call, we have a team of Application Engineers ready to answer your questions and recommend a solution for your applications.

Link to our Promotion Page

Cody Biehle
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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