Tag: amplifier

Amplifiers – Ours Go To Eleven

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment
1 – These go to 11

Once again, quoting and connecting to iconic pop culture movies from my younger years gets the best of me. If you have seen Spinal Tap, make sure you follow me on X, so we can connect and be friends. I’m sure you’ll like my posts just as much as my blogs. Well, the truth is, our amplifiers don’t go to eleven, they actually come in various sizes, and they aren’t made to just generate sound.

They are actually designed to take a small amount of compressed air and then entrain a large volume of free ambient air, combine them and force them out of the discharge side. They can be used to amplify the volume of air used to blowoff, cool or evacuate from an area. Tyler does a great job of showcasing just how fast they can cool a part when compared to a commercially available fan.

There is another type of “amplifier” in the compressed air field as well, the pressure booster is out there as well and we will sometimes get inquiries about this type of device. The trick is, these will increase your operating pressure. However, they cannot increase the volumetric flow of the compressed air.

The type of amplification they do is through orifice, valve, and even pistons to increase the the actual pressure of the system. The way our Air Amplifiers work is shown below. By using a patented shim on the Super Air Amplifiers and an engineered profile on both the Super and Adjustable Air Amplifiers we optimize the volume of air entrained on the low pressure side while maintaining a nominal size on the low pressure and the discharge side so ducting or tubing can be connected. The trick is that if you place your hand over the suction side or the positive displacement side it will actually just backfeed through the body. The units all meet or exceed the OSHA directive for dead end pressure because it can simply feed out the other side.

If you would like to discuss Air Amplifiers and where they may be able to help you reduce compressed air Consumptions or increase performance of an application, please contact an Application Engineer today.

Brian Farno, MBA – CCASS
National Business Development Manager

BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

1 – These go to 11.mpg – pmw8000 – Retrieved from, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KOO5S4vxi0o – published on 11/11/2011.

EXAIR Compliance with OSHA 1910.242(b)

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

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.

So making sure you are in compliance with 1910.242(b) is truly a life and death situation. Most people believe that lowering the pressure to the blow off device is the only method to keep their operators safe from an air embolism. However this can become a problem when you really need the force of greater than 30 PSIG to complete your operation. We at EXAIR want to give you the flexibility to run at any pressure with out the risk of building that 30 PSI of dead-end pressure! We do this with our line of Intelligent Compressed Air® nozzles! All of EXAIR’s Air Nozzles 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.

Another great example of this is our 2″ Flat super air nozzle. The design not only allows the nozzle to amplify the air flow in the blast of air, the over hang will not let the dead end pressure build as it can escape around the edges and bottom!

2″ Flat Super Air Nozzle

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!

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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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

 

Specials

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

I know we blog a good amount about having all catalog products in stock and ready to ship same day if we receive the order by 3:30 P.M. EST.  We also blog a good amount about how we can go outside of the box and make specials for customers that may even be a combination of a few products.  This week I had a customer who wanted an Ion Air Cannon without the Ionization.  After looking at the Super Air Amplifiers he said, “No, I need the adjustability of the Ion Air Cannon.”  So I simply told him no problem.   We can take our standard 120022, 2″ Super Air Amplifier, and bolt it right to the stand for an Ion Air Cannon.

Though not a production piece, we have made this from time to time. It is just one example of how here at EXAIR we go the extra mile to ensure you get not only what you need but also what you want and in a quick manner.  The turn around time for this special is 2-3 days from the date of order.  That means in less than a week you can have a custom Super Air Amplifier at your door that is not a catalog product.   I know some companies that you can’t even get their catalog products in less than a week.

If you have any questions or see something on our site that you think, “I need something like that but just a bit different”, then give us a call.  We’ll do whatever we can to make sure you get the right product for your compressed air application.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF