Tag: Fitting

Using Accessories to Boost Your Tools

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

I was once on a local theater’s website, ordering tickets to an upcoming show that my wife and I were excited to see. I had the option to pay online and have a digital code emailed to me in lieu of a real live paper ticket. Can you believe they wanted to charge me almost $2 A TICKET for that?!? I adamantly refused (by that I mean I clicked the mouse extra hard on the “Will Call” button before completing my payment)…and saved that $4 (almost) for something REALLY important.

The night of the show, there was a 20-minute line at the Will Call window. Folks who had opted for the digital code were doing a quick scan with their smartphones and walking straight into the theater. I used the $4 I saved to partially pay for a $10 glass of wine from a concession kiosk in the lobby, as a peace offering for my lovely bride. That was indeed “something REALLY important.”

Another time, I was ordering a sump pump backup system for our house. I had the option of paying extra for the deluxe system, which came with all the fittings and a special tool to make installation a bit easier. Even though the ‘deluxe’ system adder was probably a bit more than the cost of the fittings from my local hardware store, I paid the “convenience fee” and got the deluxe system anyway. For the record, during the installation, I realized I would have bought an incorrect fitting at the local store which would have forced an emergency trip while I had the water turned off in my whole house. THAT was an inconvenience I was glad to have avoided.

Similarly, you can buy any EXAIR product with, or without, accessories that’ll make for simpler installation, improved performance, and to ensure it does what you want it to do. Some of these are product-specific, but many are suitable (and recommended) for use with any of our products:

Filter Separators

Good engineering practice calls for point of use filtration for any compressed air operated device. Even if you have the best intake & discharge filters on your air compressor, trace amounts of contaminants can sneak through, pipes can rust, and water vapor that the dryer doesn’t catch can condense. Particulates can build up and eventually clog the tight clearances in many engineered compressed air products, and if you’re using air for cleaning, drying, etc., keep in mind that whatever’s in your air will get on your product. Moisture isn’t always as big of a deal, but it can freeze inside Vortex Tubes, Spot Cooling Products, Cold Guns, and Cabinet Cooler Systems. That’s why we include Filter Separators in our Air Knife, Air Wipe, Static Eliminator Products, Line Vac, Adjustable Spot Cooler, Cold Gun, and Cabinet Cooler System Kits.

Automatic Drain Filter Separators come in sizes from 1/4 NPT to 1-1/4 NPT, for compressed air flows up to 400 SCFM.

Oil Removal Filters

These aren’t always needed, but we have them if your application calls for it. Some of the “usual suspects” are food & Pharma (see above “whatever’s in your air will get on your product”), blowoff prior to painting (the smallest amount of oil on the surface causes a phenomenon known as “fish eye” and it looks exactly like that sounds), or when your compressor is known to have oil carryover.

When properly installed downstream of an Automatic Drain Filter Separator (left,) an Oil Removal Filter (center) will provide clean, oil free air to the Pressure Regulator (right) and all downstream components.

Pressure Regulators

One of our Six Steps To Optimizing Your Compressed Air System is to control the air pressure at the point of use to minimize air consumption. In other words, find the supply pressure for your product that gets the job done, so you don’t use any more compressed air than you have to. Like the Filter Separators above, these come with many EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product Kits.

Pressure Regulators “dial in” performance to get the job done without using more air than necessary.

Mounting Brackets and Coupling Kits

Most of our Filter Separators, Oil Removal Filters, and Pressure Regulators can be attached to a wall, panel, etc., with a Mounting Bracket, and can actually be attached to each other with a modular Coupling Kit. These parts simplify the installation, ensure they are oriented correctly, and minimize the chance for air leaks.

Filters (left) and Pressure Regulators (center) can be mounted using Brackets, and they can be connected together with Modular Couplers (right).

Silencing Mufflers

Many EXAIR products are engineered to develop a boundary layer of low velocity air flow that greatly reduces the sound level during operation. Other products use a venturi mechanism to draw a vacuum (Reversible Drum Vacs and E-Vac Vacuum Generators) or a Vortex Tube to generate cold air flow. The air flow from these products cannot be subjected to back pressure, and, without anything to mitigate the sound pressure generated by the rapid pressure drop as the air exits, they can be quite loud. For these, we have Silencing Mufflers that, except for the largest & most powerful of these products, reduce the sound level to be compliant with OSHA Standard 1910.95 Maximum Noise Exposure Limits.

From left to right… Reclassifying Mufflers offer the highest noise level reduction, eliminate oil mist, and come in sizes from 1/8 NPT to 1 NPT.
Sintered Bronze Mufflers are low cost and compact, with threads from #10-32 to 1-1/2 NPT.
Straight Through Mufflers use an internal sleeve of sound reducing foam, with threads from ¼ NPT to ¾ NPT, with male threads on one end and female threads on the other.
Heavy Duty Mufflers have an aluminum shell and an internal stainless steel screen that keeps contaminants like rust from being ejected in a dangerous way.  We have them in ¼ NPT and ¾ NPT sizes.

Shutoff and Solenoid Valves

Another one of our Six Steps To Optimizing Your Compressed Air System is to turn off the compressed air when it’s not in use. For this, EXAIR offers manual ball valves, for operator control, and Solenoid Valves, to automate the process.

Solenoid Valves (left) are available for 120VAC, 240VAC, and 24VDC in sizes from 1/4 NPT to 1 NPT. We offer manual Ball Valves in sizes from 1/8 NPT to 1-1/4 NPT.

Swivel Fittings, Stay Set Hoses, and Magnetic Bases

EXAIR Super Air Nozzles are threaded for installation with common air pipe & hose fittings. If the pipe isn’t pointed in the exact right direction, a Swivel Fitting gives you 50°  of adjustability. If the pipe isn’t quite close enough to what you want to blow off, Stay Set Hoses come in lengths of 6″ to 36″, and when bent to aim the Air Nozzle, they ‘stay set’, as advertised, until they need to be moved. If a pipe doesn’t exist and you need to run an air hose from the nearest drop on the header, Magnetic Bases can support the Air Nozzle and a Stay Set Hose to get the air where you want it. They even have shutoff valves to turn them off when they’re not in use (that’s a good thing; see above).

Save installation time AND get your blowoff pointed in the right direction!

Hoses and Compressed Air Fittings

If you need one of the aforementioned air hoses to reach a Magnetic Base or to supply a Safety Air Gun, we have two diameters to choose from – 3/8″ ID (1/4 MNPT threads on the ends) and 1/2″ ID (1/2 MNPT threads on the end), and we can make them to any length you need. And, while our selection probably isn’t quite as comprehensive as your local piping supply shop, we stock a number of pipe nipples, Couplers, Reducers, Tees, and Elbows that are commonly used with our products. So – like my backup sump pump deluxe kit, we can put all the fittings you may require in the same box for you.

Contact an Application Engineer if you have ANY questions about how to properly supply compressed air to your EXAIR products.

At EXAIR, we’re here to make sure you get the most out of our products, and your compressed air system. If you need accessories to help with that, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
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Pressure Drop and Compressed Air Piping

Published on by John BallLeave a comment

EXAIR has been manufacturing Intelligent Compressed Air Products since 1983. They are engineered with the highest of quality, efficiency, safety, and effectiveness in mind. Since compressed air is the utility for operation, the performance limitations can be defined by its supply. With EXAIR products and pneumatic equipment, you will need a way to transfer the compressed air from the source to the point-of-use. There are three main ways; pipes, hoses and tubes.

One of the largest systematic problems with compressed air systems is pressure drop.  If too large a pressure loss occurs, pneumatic equipment will not have enough power to operate effectively and efficiently.  The amount of pressure drop is based on restrictions, obstructions, and piping.  When air is forced into small areas, it will cause a high velocity.  The high velocity will create turbulent air flow which increases the pressure loss.  A restrictive type of pressure drop can be found in different forms, like small diameter pipes or tubing; or restrictive fittings like quick disconnects and needle valves, and undersized filters, regulators and valves. 

Why did I bring this up? Pressure drop… Pressure Drop is a waste of energy, and it reduces the ability of your compressed air system to do work. To cut waste, we need to reduce pressure drop.  If we look at the equation for pressure drop, we can find the factors that play an important role. Equation 1 shows an equation for pressure drop.

Equation 1:

From Equation 1, differential pressure is controlled by the flow of compressed air, the length of the pipe, the diameter of the pipe, and the inlet pressure. As you can see, the pressure drop is inversely affected by the inner diameter to the fifth power. So, if the inner diameter of the pipe is twice as small, the pressure drop will increase by 25, or 32 times.

It is very important to know the inner diameter of the supply lines to your pneumatic devices.  As an example, a model 110006 6” Super Air Knife will need a 3/8″ black, schedule 40 pipe that has an I.D. of 0.493″ (12.5 mm).  We use this pipe to flow 21 SCFM of compressed air at 100 PSIG through 50 feet of pipe.  What would be the pressure drop?  With Equation 1, we get a pressure drop of 1.28 * (21 SCFM/60) ^1.85 * 50 feet / ((0.493″)^5 * 100 PSIG) = 3.15 PSID.  Thus, you started with 100 PSIG, and at the end of the 50 ft. pipe, you will only have (100 PSI – 3.15 PSI) = 96.85 PSIG to use. 

Let’s look at a 3/8” hose and a 3/8” tube. The 3/8” hose has an inner diameter of 0.375” (9.5 mm), and the 3/8” tube has an inner diameter of 0.25” (6.4 mm). In keeping the same variables except for the diameter, we can calculate the pressure drop with the above equation. 3/8″ hose = 1.28 * (21 SCFM/60) ^1.85 * 50 feet / ((0.0.375″)^5 * 100 PSIG) = 12.4 PSID. 3/8″ tube = 1.28 * (21 SCFM/60) ^1.85 * 50 feet / ((0.25″)^5 * 100 PSIG) = 94 PSID.

As you can see, the 3/8” hose has a pressure drop 3.94 times higher than the 3/8″ NPT pipe. Also, the 3/8″ tube has a pressure drop 7.6 times higher than the hose. 

Diameters: 3/8″ Pipe vs. 3/8″ tube

At EXAIR, we want to make sure that our customers are able to get the most from our products. To do this, we need to properly size the compressed air lines. Within our installation sheets for our Super Air Knives, we recommend the in-feed pipe sizes for each air knife at different lengths. (You will have to sign in to the website to download).  We also have an excerpt about replacing schedule 40 pipe with a compressed air hose. We state; “If compressed air hose is used, always go one size larger than the recommended pipe size due to the smaller I.D. of hose”. Here is the reason. The 1/4” NPT Schedule 40 pipe has an inner diameter of 0.364” (9.2mm). Since the 3/8” compressed air hose has an inner diameter of 0.375” (9.5mm), the diameter will not create any additional pressure drop. Some industrial facilities like to use compressed air tubing instead of hoses. This is fine as long as the inner diameters match appropriately with the recommended pipe in the installation sheets. Then you can reduce waste from pressure drops and get the most from your EXAIR as well as all other pneumatic products.

With the diameter playing such a significant role in creating or mitigating pressure drop, it is very important to understand the type of connections to your pneumatic devices; i.e. hoses, pipes, or tubes. In most cases, this could be the reason for the under performance of your pneumatic products, as well as wasting money through operation of your compressed air system. If you would like to discuss further the ways to save energy and reduce pressure drops, an Application Engineer at EXAIR will be happy to help you.

John Ball
Application Engineer
Email: johnball@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_jb

Compressed Air Pipe

Importance Of Proper Pneumatic Tube, Pipe, And Fittings

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

When it comes to engineered compressed products, the number one cause of less-than-optimal performance is improper supply line sizing.  This can mean one of two things:

  • The hose, pipe, or tubing running to the device is too small in diameter.
  • The hose, pipe or tubing is big enough in diameter, but too long.

The problem with either of these is line loss (follow that link if you want to do the math.)  Put simply, the air wants to move faster than it’s physically permitted to.  Any time fluid flows through a conduit of any sort, friction acts on it via contact with the inside surface of said conduit.

With smaller diameters, a larger percentage of the air flow is affected…no matter what diameter the line is, the air closest to the inner wall is affected by the friction generated.  When diameter increases, the thickness of this affected zone doesn’t increase proportionally, so larger diameters mean less of the air is affected by friction.  It also means there’s a lot more room (by a factor of the square of the radius, times pi…thanks, Archimedes!) for the air to flow through.

Likewise, with longer lengths, there’s more contact, which equals more friction.  Length, however, is often a non-negotiable.  You can’t just up and move a 100HP air compressor from one part of the plant to another.  So, when we’re talking about selecting proper supply lines, we’re going to start with the distance from the compressed air header to our device, and pick the diameter that will give us the flow we need through that length.  In fact, that’s exactly how to use the Recommended Infeed Pipe Size table in EXAIR’s Super Air Knife Installation & Maintenance Guide:

This table comes directly from the Installation & Operation Instructions for the Super Air Knife.

Once we have the correct line size (diameter,) let’s consider the fittings:

  • Tapered pipe threads (NPT or BSPT) are the best.  They offer no restriction in flow, and are readily commercially available.  If you’re using pipe, these are the standard threads for fittings.  If you want to use hose, a local hydraulic/pneumatic shop can usually make hoses with the fittings you need, at the service counter, while you wait.
  • If you need to frequently break and make the connection (e.g., a Chip Vac System that’s used throughout your facility,) quick connects are convenient and inexpensive.  Push-to-connect types are by far the most common, but a word of warning: they’re notoriously restrictive, as the inside diameter of the male end is markedly smaller than the line size.  If you use them, go up a size or two…a quick connect made for 1/2 NPT connections will work just fine for a 1/4″ line:
  • The nice thing about these quick connects is that you don’t have to depressurize the line to make or break the connection.  If you have the ability to depressurize the line, though, claw-type fittings (like the one shown on the right) provide the convenience of a quick connect, without the restriction in flow.

Proper air supply is key to performance of any compressed air product.  If you want to know, at a glance, if you’re supplying it properly, install a pressure gauge right at (or as close as practical) to the inlet.  Any difference in its reading and your header pressure indicates a restriction.  Here’s a video that clearly shows how this all works:

I want to make sure you get the most out of your compressed air system.  If you want that to, give me a call with any questions you might have.

Russ Bowman
Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Swivel This Or Swivel That

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

Untitled
The Nano Super Air Nozzle is available with an M6 x 0.75 thread OR a 1/8 NPT thread.

I recently took a call from a customer who was looking for a Nano Super Air Nozzle with a swivel and NPT threads.  We have two versions of this (see above) thanks to our plethora of options.  We offer a newer Mini Swivel Fitting that will allow the M6 thread of the Nano Super Air Nozzle to go straight into the swivel joint and it gives you a 1/8″ MNPT on the opposite side.  This still permits the 25° from center range of motion as the standard swivels do but, with a smaller footprint,  is able to get into tighter spaces.

1110SSW - Nano Super Air Nozzle w/ Mini Swivel Fitting
1110SSW – Nano Super Air Nozzle w/ Mini Swivel Fitting

 

The other option is to utilize a model 1110SS-NPT which is a Nano Super Air Nozzle w/ 1/8″ NPT adapter, then add a 1/8″ NPT Swivel fitting which is a model 9052.  This option is a little bulkier, but if you needed some extra length on the nozzle side to get closer to the target area then it would be helpful.   This unit also offers the 25° from center range of motion and still gives a 1/8″ MNPT thread to plug into your system.

1110SS-NPTW - Nano Super Air Nozzle w/ NPT Adapter and 1/8" NPT Swivel Fitting
1110SS-NPTW – Nano Super Air Nozzle w/ NPT Adapter and 1/8″ NPT Swivel Fitting

As you can see in the picture above, the Mini Swivel fitting with Nano Super Air Nozzle is a more compact option, but does not reach as far as the standard 1/8″ swivel with NPT Nano Super Air Nozzle.  No matter the case, we have them both in stock and ready to ship same day on orders received by 3 PM EST that are shipping within the states.

Chances are if you have a need for a compressed air blow off, we will have more than one way to get the job done.   Our goal is to sell you the best engineered solution that will get the job done and make your life easier.  If you would like to discuss any of your applications, please contact us.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF