EXAIR Cabinet Coolers Surpass Air-To-Air Heat Exchangers

Published on by Lee EvansLeave a comment
The EXAIR Cabinet Cooler family.

At EXAIR we’ve been providing enclosure cooling solutions for decades, and in many cases those cooling solutions have remained in place for decades as well.  In the time we’ve been in the market with industrial enclosure cooling solutions we’ve encountered a number of alternative means for enclosure cooling.  One of those methods is an air-to-air heat exchanger.

An air-to-air heat exchanger uses the temperature differential between the ambient air surrounding an enclosure and the hot air inside an enclosure to create a cooling effect.  A closed loop system exchanges the heat inside the enclosure with the outside air in an effort to maintain a set internal temperature.  The heat exchange of most air-to-air unit relies on a heat pipe, a heat-transfer device which converts an internal refrigerant liquid into vapor by placing one end of the pipe in contact with the hot environment.  The heated vapor travels to the other end of the pipe which is in contact with a cooler environment.  The vapor condenses back into a liquid (releasing latent heat) and returning to the hot end of the pipe and the cycle repeats.  All in all, a clever solution.

But, this type of a solution does give some cause for concern, especially when considering their use in an industrial environment.  Here are the key points to keep in mind when comparing an air-to-air cooler to an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler.

Required temperature differential based on ambient air temp

An air-to-air heat exchange relies on the ΔT between the ambient air temperature and the internal enclosure air temperature to produce cooling.  If this ΔT is low, or the ambient temperature rises, cooling is diminished.  This means that as the temperatures in your facility begin to rise, air-to-air heat exchangers become less and less effective.  Larger air-to-air heat exchangers can be used, but these may be even larger than the enclosure itself.

EXAIR Cabinet Coolers rely on the ΔT between the cold air temperature from the Cabinet Cooler (normally ~20°F) and the desired internal enclosure temperature (normally 95°F).  The cold air temperature from the Cabinet Cooler is unaffected by increases in ambient temperatures.  The large ΔT and high volume cold air flow produced by a Cabinet Cooler results in more cooling capacity.  And, we can increase cooling capacity from a Cabinet Cooler without increasing its physical footprint, which is already much, much smaller than an air-to-air type of unit.

 

Cooling in high temperature environments

High Temperatures are no problem for EXAIR Cabinet Coolers

Due to their nature of operation, an air-to-air heat exchanger must have an ambient temperature which is lower than the desired internal temperature of the enclosure.  If the ambient air has a higher temperature, air-to-air units provide zero cooling.

Cabinet Coolers, on the other hand, can be used in hot, high temperature environments up to 200°F (93°C).

 

Cooling in dirty environments

An EXAIR NEMA 12 Cabinet Cooler in an extremely dirty environment. Still operating after over 7 years, without any maintenance.

Dirt in the ambient environment will impact cooling performance with an air-to-air heat exchanger.  In order for the air-to-air unit to effectively remove heat, the heat pipe must have access to ambient air.  With any exposure to the ambient environment comes the possibility for the ambient end of the heat pipe to become covered in ambient contaminants such as dust.  This dust will create an insulation barrier between the heat pipe and the ambient air, decreasing the ability for the heat pipe to condense the vapors within.  Because of this, most air-to-air devices use filters to separate the heat pipe from the ambient environment.  But, when these filters become clogged, access to ambient temperatures are reduced, and cooling capacity of the air-to-air unit reduces as well.

Cabinet Coolers have no problem operating in dirty environments.  In fact, it is one of their strengths.  Without any moving parts to wear out or any need to contact ambient air for cooling purposes, a dirty environment poses no problems.  In fact, check out this blog post (and this one) about EXAIR Cabinet Coolers operating maintenance free for years in dirty environments.

 

Size and time required to install

Air-to-air heat exchangers vary in size, but even the smallest units can have large dimensions.  Many applications have limited space on the enclosure, and a large, bulky solution can be prohibitive.  Couple this with the time and modification required to the enclosure to install a large air-to-air unit, and the “solution” may end up bringing additional problems.

Another key aspect of the Cabinet Cooler is its size.  Small, compact, and easy to mount on the top or side of an enclosure, Cabinet Coolers install in minutes to remove overheating problems.  Check out this video to see how simple Cabinet Coolers are to install.

Rising ambient temperatures translate to less natural heat transfer into the ambient environment.  As temperatures rise and overheating electrical components becomes a concern, remember EXAIR Cabinet Coolers as a viable solution.  If you have any questions about how an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler can solve problems in your facility, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer.

Lee Evans
Application Engineer
LeeEvans@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_LE

Two Birds With One Stone (and A Shim)

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

Blowing off bottles is such a popular application for the EXAIR Super Air Knife, it’s been featured on the cover of our Catalog…several times…and is the “banner” pictures on the Super Air Knives page on our website:

This always makes me thirsty for orange soda.

I had the pleasure of helping a caller from a bottling plant recently with just such an application.  Thing is, they run a couple of different size bottles, and it’s not a very big facility…they didn’t want to, or have room to, install different lengths of Air Knives, and also didn’t want to waste air flow when they were running the shorter bottles.

9″ Air Knives were required for the taller bottles, but their shorter bottles were a little under 6″ tall.  They had considered buying both 6″ and 9″ Air Knives, but called me to see if there was a less expensive, and possibly, easier way.  (There is!)

EXAIR makes, and stocks, every product in our 208 page catalog right here in this building in Cincinnati, Ohio.  We also make custom parts when the need arises…and custom Air Knife shims were the solution to this customer’s application.

By installing two Model 110009 9″ Aluminum Super Air Knives, one on either side of the conveyor (just like the photo above,) they’re able to blow off the taller bottles.  When they run the shorter bottles, they change out the shims for ones that limit the flow to a 6″ curtain.

So…for a little under $50.00 (2017 cost for those custom shims,) they’re going to save almost $550.00 per year in compressed air costs – AND make sure that their compressed air system is optimized & available for other loads throughout the plant.

EXAIR offers the Super Air Knife in lengths from 3″ to 108″, with a 0.002″ shim installed.  They’re ideal for most industrial and commercial blow off applications, right out of the package.  If your application calls for something a little “outside the box,” you may only be a shim away from success.  If you have such an application, give me a call.

Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
Find us on the Web
Follow me on Twitter
Like us on Facebook

Vortex Tube Cools Glue On A Paper Folding Machine

Published on by exaircorpLeave a comment

I recently worked on a cooling application with an engineering company who designed a paper folding machine for their customer. As the paper enters the machine, it travels over a series of rollers or “plows” that folds the paper into the desired design. At the last step a heated glue is applied to the edge so the paper stays folded. After the paper leaves the folder it is sent to a stack machine to be processed and packaged for shipment. It was at this area they were starting to see some issues arise as the glue was retaining heat, causing it to leak onto the dividers of the stacker or other finished papers.

Example of a paper folding machine

To try and remedy the situation, the customer had installed an air nozzle to blow compressed air across the last fold and while this did work somewhat, they had to operate at really low pressure so they didn’t cause the paper to move while trying to cool the glue. This slowed the process down, which was negatively affecting their production output, so they reached out for assistance on a more reliable solution.

After further discussing the process with the design company, I recommended they use our Model # 3908 Small Vortex Tube Cooling Kit. The Vortex Tube Cooling Kits include the Vortex Tube, cold muffler, tubing, filter separator and all of the generators to change the flow rate and cooling capacity of the Vortex Tube during operation. The temperature drop from the supply air temperature and the volume of air being exhausted can be controlled by adjusting the valve in the hot end to change the cold fraction (the percentage of air being exhausted out of the cold end versus the amount of air being exhausted out of the hot end).

Items included in a Vortex Tube Cooling Kit

By incorporating the Cooling Kit into the process, the customer would be able to experiment with the airflow and temperature to achieve an acceptable balance, providing enough cold air to cure the glue, while not disrupting the process. If you have a similar process you would like to discuss, please contact an application engineer at 800-903-9247 for assistance.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN

The Folding Machine 4 image courtesy of Ms. Tharpe via creative commons license

OSHA Standard 1910.242(b) – Dead-End Pressure and Chip Guarding Explained

Published on by Tyler Daniel3 Comments

OSHA Standard 1910.242(b) discusses the use of compressed air for cleaning and blowoff. It states that the use of compressed air for cleaning purposes is prohibited if the dead-ended pressure exceeds 30 psig. This phrase means the downstream pressure of the air nozzle or gun, used for cleaning purposes, will remain at a pressure level below 30 psig for all static conditions. In the event that dead ending occurs, the static pressure at the main orifice shall not exceed 30 psi. If it does exceed this pressure, there is a very high potential for it to create an air embolism. An air embolism, left untreated, can quickly impede the flow of blood throughout the body. This can lead to stroke, heart attack, and sometimes death. Take a look at the animation below to see how an air embolism can affect the body.

With this in mind, there are only two options for staying within compliance of this standard. Either install an engineered solution that will reduce the air pressure to less than 30 psig if dead-ended, or regulate the pressure below 30 psig. For the vast majority of operations, regulating the input pressure below 30 psig is useless. The force and flow from the nozzle at this pressure is greatly reduced and likely not enough to be effective in most applications. All of EXAIR’s Safety Air Guns are designed so that the flow cannot be dead-ended. The fins on the Super Air Nozzles are not only useful in amplifying the force by drawing in ambient air, but they also prevent an operator from completely obstructing the airflow.

sag-osha-compliant
The fins of the Super Air Nozzle allow air to escape and prevent dead-end pressure from exceeding 30 psig.

In addition to being concerned about dead-end pressure, OSHA 1910.242(b) also states that compressed air used for cleaning should include effective chip guarding. By this, they mean that some method or equipment must be installed that will prevent chips and particles from coming back into the eyes or skin of the operator. In addition to offering OSHA compliant nozzles and guns, EXAIR also has Chip Shields that can be installed onto any of our Safety Air Guns. The polycarbonate shields protect the operator from any flying debris while performing a drying or blowoff operation. Simply add a “-CS” to the end of any Safety Air Gun Model number to have a Chip Shield installed on the gun.

1210peek-cs
EXAIR’s Model 1210-PEEK-CS with Chip Shield

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 does not contain any provisions that allow for the approval or endorsement of equipment. Alteration or the misapplication of what was once a safe piece of equipment would create a dangerous scenario that is out of the control of the original manufacturer. Any nozzles or guns marketed as “OSHA approved” should immediately throw up a red flag. Identifying and implementing a safe, OSHA compliant solution rests in the hands of the manufacturer themselves. If you’ve got questions about compressed air safety or have an existing blowoff in place that does not adhere to this OSHA directive, give us a call. We’ll be sure to recommend a solution that will keep your operators and wallets safe!

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