Tag: compressed air knife

Super Air Knife Saves Money Compared to Drilled Pipe

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A few months ago, my counterpart Brian Bergmann wrote a blog providing a detailed explanation of ROI or Return on Investment. Today, I would like to take this information and apply it to a common situation we deal with regularly here at EXAIR – replacing drilled pipe with our Super Air Knife.

Drilled pipe – easy to make but extremely wasteful

Sections of pipe with drilled holes across the length are very common as they are made of relatively inexpensive materials and simple to make.  Where the cost begins to add up is on the operation side as these types of homemade blowoffs waste a ton of compressed air, making them expensive to operate.

For comparison, lets look at a 12″ section of pipe with (23) 1/16″ diameter drilled holes. According to the chart below, each hole will flow 3.8 SCFM @ 80 PSIG for a total of 87.4 SCFM.

With an average cost of $ 0.25 per every 1,000 SCF used (based on $ 0.08/kWh), it would cost $ 1.31 to operate this blowoff for 1 hour. (87.4 SCFM x 60 minutes x $ 0.25 / 1,000)

Super Air Knife – Available from 3″ up to 108″ in aluminum, 303ss and 316ss

Now let’s take a look at replacing the drilled pipe with our 12″ Super Air Knife. A 12″ Super Air Knife will consume 34.8 SCFM (2.9 SCFM per inch) when operated at 80 PSIG. Using the same figure of $ 0.25 per every 1,000 SCF used, it would cost $ 0.52 / hr. to operate this knife. (34.8 SCFM x 60 minutes x $ 0.25 / 1,000)

Now that we know the operating costs, we can make a better comparison between the 2 products.

Drilled pipe operating costs:
$ 1.31 per hour
$ 10.48 per day (8 hours)

12″ Super Air Knife costs:
$ 0.52 per hour
$ 4.16 per day (8 hours)

Cost Savings:
$ 10.48 per day (drilled pipe) –  $ 4.16 per day (Super Air Knife) = $ 6.32 savings per day

A 12″ aluminum Super Air Knife carries a LIST price of $ 297.00. If we take $ 297.00 divided by $ 6.32 (saving per day), we get a ROI of only 47 days.

As you can see, it is quite beneficial to consider ALL of the parameters when looking at a process or application, rather than just the “upfront” details. What seems like a simple and easy fix, can actually be quite  wasteful when it comes to the true cost of ownership.

If you are using similar devices in your plant and would like to see how an EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product can help make the process operate more efficiently, contact an application engineer for assistance.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN

 

An Overview of EXAIR’s Award Winning Super Air Knife

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Loud and inefficient homemade blowoff

Drilled pipes, like the one shown above, are all too common in industrial settings for processes where a wide surface area needs to be treated. Their popularity can be attributed to how cheap and easy they are to make but in actuality they are very expensive to operate, as they waste large amounts of compressed air, and are very dangerous to operate.

We frequently take calls from customers looking for a more energy efficient, safer solution to replace these types of blowoffs. EXAIR manufactures 3 different styles of Air Knife – the Super, Standard and Full-Flow – that are the ideal solution for wide coverage applications. Today, I would like to provide an overview of our award wining Super Air Knife.

The Super Air Knife

The Super Air Knife is our most efficient air knife in regards to compressed air usage, using only 2.9 SCFM per inch of knife length @ 80 PSIG. It is also the quietest on the market today at only 69 decibels. The Super Air Knife provides the highest air velocity of the 3 styles offered by EXAIR and produces 2.5 ounces of force per inch at 80 PSIG operating pressure. We offer stock lengths from 3” up to 108” in single piece construction with available materials of aluminum, 303ss and 316ss. We also offer PVDF (Polyvinylidene Fluoride) up to 54” for harsh environments.

The Super Air Knife provides a laminar airflow across the entire length with hard-hitting force. They also give a 40:1 amplification rate meaning they entrain 40 parts of the surrounding room air for every 1 part of compressed air used, producing a large volume outlet flow.

Coupling Kit for the Super Air Knives

For applications requiring an air knife length longer than 108″, we offer a coupling bracket kit that allows you to connect two Super Air Knives together for a seamless, uninterrupted flow. Kits are available in aluminum, 303ss or 316ss to match the construction of the knife.

In addition, we also offer plumbing kits as an accessory item. For aluminum Super Air Knives, we offer cut to length nitrile/PVC hose and brass fittings and for stainless steel and PVDF knives we offer 316ss cut-t0-length pipe and fittings.

If you have any questions on how the Super Air Knife might fit into your process, please contact an Application Engineer.

Justin Nicholl
Application Engineer
justinnicholl@exair.com
@EXAIR_JN

Super Air Knife – Free Air Via a 40:1 Amplification Ratio

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Intelligent Use of Compressed Air – Most industrial facilities have at least one air compressor.  The compressor is used to power anything from pneumatic tools, air powered equipment, compressed air cylinders, blowoffs and many more types of operations.  Improper use of compressed air can lead to unnecessary energy costs, high noise levels and dangerous exposure of personnel to high pressure air.

The EXAIR Super Air Knife uses only 1/3 of the compressed air of typical blowoffs.

LSAKpr_2mb
Long Super Air Knife with Plumbing Kit Installed and using the model 9060 Universal Air Knife Mounting Kit to Blowoff Laser Cutting Debris

By taking advantage of the Super Air Knife’s highly efficient design and the action of air entertainment, the Super Air Knife draws in large amounts of surrounding free outside air into the air stream. The result is a strong powerful air flow made up of a small amount of compressed air and a large amount of ambient air.

Capture

  • Compressed air flows through an inlet (1) into the plenum chamber of the Super Air Knife. The flow is directed to a precise slotted orifice. As the primary airflow exits the thin slotted nozzle (2), it follows a flat surface that directs the airflow in a perfectly straight line.  This creates a uniform sheet of air across the entire length of the Super Air Knife. Velocity loss is minimized and force is maximized as room air (3) is entrained into the primary air stream at a ratio of 40:1.  The result is a well defined sheet of laminar airflow with hard-hitting force and minimal wind shear is delivered.

By using a Super Air Knife – and the advantage of the high amplification via air entertainment – for part blowoff, cooling, or drying you can reduce energy costs, reduce noise levels, and eliminate harmful dead end pressures. Other air knives typically entrain surrounding air at a ratio of 30:1 or less.

EXAIR offers the Super Air Knife with materials of construction of aluminum, Types 303 and 316 Stainless Steel, and PVDF to cover a wide variety of application temperatures and environments. Other materials may be possible, pending review by our Product Design Engineers. The Super Air Knives are offered as the knife only, as part of a full kit, which also includes a shim set, auto drain filter separator, and pressure regulator.  The Super Air Knife can be fitted with Plumbing Kits and/or Electronic Flow Control making installation easier and help to save on air usage.

If you have questions about Super Air Knives, or would like to talk about any EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air® Product, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or one of our Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution.

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

Send me an email
Find us on the Web 
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Twitter: @EXAIR_BB

EXAIR Super Air Knife Promotion Runs Through 12/31/17

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EXAIR will be giving away a free Soft Grip Safety Air Gun with the purchase of any EXAIR Super Air Knife from November 1st through December 31st, 2017.  This special promotion will apply to all Super Air Knife orders, whether aluminum, stainless steel, or PVDF.  Use the promotional model number during the promotional period and receive a free model 1210, a value of $81.00! The Soft Grip Safety Air Gun is a Top Pick, and provides the ideal combination of forceful flow, quiet noise level and low compressed air usage.  To get the special promotional item, use the special part numbers as detailed in the link below.

sgsagpromo

The Super Air Knife is the latest generation of the EXAIR engineered air knives with dramatically reduced compressed air usage and noise compared to other types of blowoffs.  The Super Air Knife is truly a more efficient tool for cleaning, drying or cooling parts, webs, or conveyors.  The air flow is a uniform sheet of laminar air across the entire length with a hard-hitting force.

Replacing a noisy blowoff with a Super Air Knife results is a significant reduction in sound.  Operation at a high pressure of 80 PSIG (5.5 Bar) leads to a sound level of just 69 dBA for most applications. Air amplification ratios (entrained air to compressed air) of 40:1 is produced. It also meets OSHA maximum dead-end pressure and noise requirements, for safe operation in the vicinity of plant personnel.

Typical applications for use include-

  • Post wash part drying
  • Sheet cleaning in strip mills
  • Conveyor cleaning
  • Part or component cooling
  • Web drying or cleaning
  • Environmental separation (air curtain)
  • Pre-paint blowoff and cleaning
  • Bag opening/filling operations
  • Scrap removal on converting operations

Take advantage of the Promotional Offering by clicking on the link at the top of the page.  Qualified orders receive the free model 1210 Soft Grip Safety Air Guns as shown below.

1210
FREE! EXAIR Model 1210 Soft Grip Safety Air Gun

If you have questions about Super Air Knives, Safety Air Guns, or would like to talk about any EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air® Product, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or one of our Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution.

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

Send me an email
Find us on the Web 
Like us on Facebook
Twitter: @EXAIR_BB