Compressed air is used to operate pneumatic systems in a facility, and it can be segregated into three main sections; the supply side, the demand side, and the distribution system. The supply side is the air compressor, after-cooler, dryer, and receiver tank that produce and treat the compressed air. They are generally found in a compressor room. The demand side is a collection of devices that will use the compressed air to do “work”. These pneumatic components are generally scattered throughout the facility. To connect the supply side to the demand side, a distribution system is required. Distribution systems are pipes or tubes which carry compressed air from the air compressor to the pneumatic devices. The three sections have to work together to make an effective and efficient system.
Compressed air is a clean utility that is used in many different ways, and it is much safer than electrical or hydraulic systems. But most people think that compressed air is free, and it is most certainly not. Because of the cost, compressed air is considered to be a fourth utility in manufacturing plants. For an electrical motor to reduce a volume of air by compressing it, it takes roughly 1 horsepower (746 watts) to compress 4 cubic feet (113L) of air every minute to 125 PSI (8.5 bar). With almost every manufacturing plant in the world utilizing air compressors larger than 1 horsepower, the amount of energy needed is extraordinary.
Let’s determine the energy cost to operate an air compressor by Equation 1:
Equation 1:
Cost = hp * 0.746 * hours * rate / (motor efficiency)
where:
Cost – US$
hp – horsepower of motor
0.746 – conversion KW/hp
hours – running time
rate – cost for electricity, US$/KWh
motor efficiency – average for an electric motor is 95%.
As an example, a manufacturing plant operates a 100 HP air compressor in their facility. The cycle time for the air compressor is roughly 60%. To calculate the hours of running time per year, I used 250 days/year at 16 hours/day. So operating hours equal 250 * 16 * 0.60 = 2,400 hours per year. The electrical rate for this facility is $0.10/KWh. With these factors, the annual cost to run the air compressor can be calculated by Equation 1:
Cost = 100hp * 0.746 KW/hp * 2,400hr * $0.10/KWh / 0.95 = $18,846 per year in electrical costs.
If we look at the point-of-use or demand side, the compressed air is generally conditioned to be used to run and control the pneumatic system. The basic units include filters, regulators, and lubricators. The filters are used to remove any oil, water, vapor, and pipe scale to keep your pneumatic system clean. They fall into different types and categories depending on the cleanliness level required.
Filter Separators are more of a coarse filtration which will capture liquid water, oil, and particulate. The Oil Removal Filters are more of a fine filtration which can capture particles down to 0.03 micron. They are also designed to “coalesce” the small liquid particles into larger droplets for gravity removal. One other group is for removing oil vapor and smell. This type of filter uses activated charcoal to adsorb the vapor for food and pharmaceutical industries. Filters should be placed upstream of regulators.
Pressure Regulators change the pressure downstream for safety and control. Pneumatic devices need both flow and pressure to work correctly. The lubricator, which is placed after the Regulator, helps to add clean oil in a compressed air line. Air tools, cylinders, and valves use the oil to keep seals from wearing with dynamic functions. Once the compressed air is “ready” for use, then it is ready to do many applications.
For EXAIR, we manufacture products that use the compressed air safely, efficiently, and effectively. EXAIR likes to use the 5-C’s; Coat, Clean, Cool, Convey and Conserve. We have products that can do each part with 16 different product lines. EXAIR has been manufacturing Intelligent Compressed Air Products since 1983. Compressed air is an expensive system to operate pneumatic systems; but, with EXAIR products, you can save yourself much money. If you need alternative ways to decrease electrical cost, improve safety, and increase productivity when using compressed air, an Application Engineer at EXAIR will be happy to help you.
John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb
