Tag: air knife design

Thinner Shim In Super Air Knife Creates Fast ROI

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

EXAIR proves often that we’re able to work with you to create a customized solution that best serves your application. Recently I had the pleasure of working with a customer who wanted a better solution on their tissue paper converting machine. What they currently had was too loud, too inefficient, and they knew there was a better way.

The machine was an old rewinder used to convert webs of tissue paper ranging from 99-115” in width. Installed on the old machine was a 115” drilled pipe with 1/16” drilled holes spaced out every ½” along the length of the pipe. This was using a substantial amount of compressed air and was significantly louder than they would’ve liked. They purchased a new machine that had an EXAIR Super Air Knife already installed and working great, so they reached out to us for some help.

The customer conducted some time studies to determine exactly how much air this application required. The air blast ran for 500 seconds per hour, equating to 8.3min/hr of air usage. The operation runs 24/7, but with time spent doing changeovers the actual run time is closer to 20hrs.

20hrs x 8.2min = 166 min/day of air usage

166min x 365 = 60,590 min per year

A 1/16” unpolished, drilled hole will consume 2.58 SCFM at a pressure of 60 PSIG. With a total of 228 holes across the full pipe, this is quite a bit of compressed air.

2.58 SCFM x 228 = 588 SCFM of compressed air

588 x 60,590 min = 35,626,920 SCF

Considering the lightweight nature of the material, we recommended that the customer use our .001” shim to cut the flow from our stock Super Air Knives to their minimum. We recommended our Model 110054-.001 and Model 110060-.001. At 60 PSIG, a Super Air Knife with .001 shim installed will consume 1.15 SCFM/inch of knife length.

114 x 1.15 SCFM = 131 SCFM of compressed air

131 x 60,590 min = 7,937,290 SCF

Installing the Super Air Knives with .001” shim reduced their air consumption by 77% for a total air savings of 27,689,630 SCF each year. But, what does this mean in terms of money? To determine the cost of compressed air, we use the approximate value of $0.25/1000 SCF.

27,689,630 SCF x $0.25/1000 = $6,922.41

In just one year, on this one single machine, this customer was able to save almost $7k per year. These knives quickly pay for themselves, then begin to contribute to your bottom line. All of this in addition to lowering the sound level and providing a safer working environment for their operators. So how quickly did this customer end up seeing the payback on their two knives?

2025 list prices are:

Model 110054-.001 – $1,554.00

Model 110060-.001 – $1,667.00

Total investment: $3,221

Based on an operation of 166 min, the customer was saving $18.90 per day. To recoup the initial purchase costs, these would only need to be operated for 171 days. On the 171st day, they’ve already saved enough compressed air to account for their initial costs. Moving forward, that savings does not go away but continues to add to the bottom line.

If you have areas in your facility that are using air inefficiently, contact an EXAIR Application Engineer today.

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

Super Ion Air Knives Overview

Published on by Al WooffittLeave a comment

Static buildup is a common problem in many manufacturing environments that can present itself in a number of ways, including shocking operators; causing materials to stick, tear or jam; or affecting sensitive electrical equipment. If you have encountered static issues in your facility, or in your own home perhaps, you may have noticed that it tends to be more prevalent in colder and dryer environments. This is due to a reduction in moisture in the air. The water vapor found in air helps to dissipate electrical charges, so when there is less moisture, there will be a higher electrical charge. This is why we are currently running a promotion for all of our Static Elimination products, now through March 31st, 2025.

One such product line that is included in this promotion is our Gen4 Super Ion Air Knives. They are engineered to remove static electricity from plastics, webs, sheet stock and other product surfaces by bathing them in a laminar sheet of air that sweeps surfaces clean of static, particulate, dust and dirt. This causes production speeds, product quality, and surface cleanliness to dramatically improve.

When the Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife floods an area or surface with static eliminating ions – up to 20 feet away, the force can be adjusted from a “blast” to a “breeze”. The Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife is shock-less, and has no moving parts. It also requires only 3.7 SCFM of compressed air per foot of length at 5 PSIG. The sound level is also surprisingly quiet at 50 dBA for most applications.

Compressed air flows through an inlet (1) into the plenum chamber of the GEN 4 Super Ion Air Knife. The flow is directed to a precise, slotted orifice. The primary air flow exits, it creates a uniform sheet of air across the entire length that immediately pulls in surrounding room air (2). An electrically powered GEN 4 Ionizing Bar (3) fills the curtain of air with positive and negative charge. The airstream delivers these static eliminating ions to the product surface (4) where it instantly neutralizes static and cleans dust and other particulates.

If you would like to discuss your static elimination application, please don’t hesitate to give us a call.

Al Wooffitt
Application Engineer

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Easily Adjustable Force and Flow with EXAIR’s Super Air Knife Shim Sets

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

EXAIR’s industry-leading Super Air Knife dramatically reduces compressed air usage and noise when compared to other blowoff methods. The Super Air Knife is available in lengths ranging from 3”-108” and in Aluminum, 303 Stainless Steel, 316 Stainless Steel, and PVDF for corrosive applications. Even at high pressures of 80 psig, the Super Air Knife is able to maintain a sound level of just 69 dBA for most applications! Air is entrained from the ambient environment at a rate of 40:1, maximizing the force and flow from the Super Air Knife. In addition, these knives meet or exceed OSHA maximum dead-end pressure and noise requirements.

Adjustability of both the force and flow from the Super Air Knife is infinitely adjustable. Right out of the box from the factory the Super Air Knife comes stock with a .002” thick shim installed. This sets the gap between the body and cap of the knife and determines how much compressed air can flow through the precise, slotted orifice. An accessory that EXAIR has available for the Super Air Knife is the shim set. For the aluminum knives, a .001”, .003”, and .004” plastic shims come in the shim set. To reduce the flow and force, a .001” can be used. If more force is required, a thicker shim can be installed. For the stainless steel and PVDF knives, (3) .002” shims are included in the set. Stainless steel shims for the stainless knives and a PTFE shim for the PVDF. These, as well as the plastic shims, can be stacked on top of one another to create an even larger gap. One thing that is important to keep in mind however, the larger the air gap the greater the air consumption. Installing a .004” shim in a Super Air Knife will double the force, flow, and consumption of the knife when compared to the stock .002” shim.

Installing a new shim in your Super Air Knife is very simple to do. Check out this quick video from Neal Raker that walks you through the steps:

While different shims are available for you to make gross adjustments to the force and flow of your Super Air Knife, there is one additional method. By using a pressure regulator, you can fine-tune the input pressure that is supplied to the Super Air Knife. This will also greatly impact the force and flow. At 40 psig, the Super Air Knife will consume 1.7 scfm/inch and provide 1.1 oz/inch of force. At 80 psig, it will consume 2.9 scfm/inch and provide 2.5 oz/inch of force. EXAIR offers pressure regulators in a variety of different sizes to accommodate any of our Super Air Knives from 3” all the way up to 108”.

If you’re wasting air in your facility using cheap nozzles, drilled pipes, or any other inefficient solution, give us a call. An Application Engineer will gladly investigate your application and help to design a better, safer, and more cost-effective solution!

All of EXAIR’s Super Air Knives (stock lengths 3-108″) are available to ship same-day with an order placed by 2:00 ET.

Tyler Daniel

Application Engineer

E-mail: TylerDaniel@exair.com

X: @EXAIR_TD

How Do You Mount An EXAIR Super Air Knife?

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

This is a fairly common question for the Application Engineering team. The quick (and fairly accurate) answer is: “Any way you want.”

Let’s unpack that a little, though. We’re obviously constrained by the laws of physics, so the method of mounting it has to be structurally sound enough to support the Super Air Knife’s weight, and the reaction force of the compressed air discharge. 3″ Super Air Knives can actually be mounted (and supplied with compressed air) using Stay Set Hoses, if you have an air line ‘drop’ nearby. If not, you can use a Magnetic Base to hold the Stay Set Hose and the Super Air Knife:

Compact, efficient and quiet, the EXAIR 3″ Super Air Knife is an ideal blow-off solution for a variety of applications. Installation is quick & easy with a Stay Set Hose and a Magnetic Base.

Longer Super Air Knives can be installed just about as easily with Universal Air Knife Mounting Systems. Air Knives up to 18″ long use one Model 9060 Mounting System. Longer Air Knives need multiple Mounting Systems for proper support.

The 72″ Super Air Knife w/ Plumbing Kit Installed shown here will use four Model 9060 Universal Air Knife Mounting Systems for proper support.

Because of their design, though, there are a number of other ways to mount a Super Air Knife. If you’re using hard pipe to supply compressed air, a shorter-length Super Air Knife will essentially be as well-supported as the pipe itself. I’ve talked to users who have successfully installed 6″ and 9″ Aluminum Super Air Knives in this manner. We wouldn’t recommend doing that with anything longer than that, due to concerns about overhung loading. The exception to that would be a Super Air Knife installed vertically…and even then, I’m unaware of anyone doing that with any Super Air Knife longer than 12″.

Curiously, though, you can use the supply piping for longer models. A Super Air Knife over 18″ in length will need to be supplied with compressed air to both ends. A properly supported pipe holding up either side offers a great deal of stability.

This Model 110054 54″ Aluminum Super Air Knife is well supported by its black iron supply pipe.

Super Air Knives also have 1/4-20 threaded holes along the bottom of the body. These are the ‘leftover’ threads below the cap screw ends that hold the cap to the body. Those cap screws can also be replaced with longer 1/4-20 hardware. That allows you to use a bracket of your choosing to mount it. We have customers who have gotten downright creative with those:

Yes, that’s a door hinge. No, it wasn’t my idea, but I kind of wish it was.

No matter which Super Air Knife you’re using, and what you’re using it for, there are always options for mounting. If you’d like help in determining which one(s) is best for you, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
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