Tag: high temperature

EXAIR’s Cabinet Coolers for Electrical Panels Over Heating

Published on by John BallLeave a comment

A food and beverage company contacted EXAIR, as they were having some issues with their air conditioning panel coolers. The units were located near ovens and the ambient temperatures were elevated.  During the summer months, the additional rise in temperature caused the air conditioning systems to under-perform.  The electronics were overheating and shutting down, causing production stoppage.  They needed a better way to keep the internal circuits cool during the hotter months.

The cooling capacities of the air conditioning panel coolers were over-sized to compensate for the high ambient conditions.  With the finicky nature of Freon systems, 8,000 BTU/hr units were required.  With the additional heat from summer, they had to continuously monitor and maintain the condenser units to keep them from running too hot.  This caused unneeded strain to their maintenance department, as it took time away from their normal duties.  They decided to contact EXAIR to see if our Cabinet Coolers could help in this situation.

Under normal conditions, refrigeration systems still have to be maintained by replacing filters, cleaning condensers, and checking compressors to prevent any failure.   Under elevated ambient conditions, it is very difficult to keep the Freon cool enough to operate adequately and the refrigeration compressor from over-heating.  EXAIR Cabinet Coolers do not use Freon or compressors to cool.  They use the power of a Vortex Tube which only needs compressed air to generate cold air.  With no moving parts to wear or unsafe chemicals to leak, they can keep the electrical components cool inside a panel for a very long time.

For sizing the EXAIR Cabinet Coolers, I needed some additional details.  I sent them the Cabinet Cooler Sizing Guide to help me determine the correct cooling capacity.  The information was as follows:

Height: 2200mm (87 inches)

Width: 800mm (31 inches)

Depth: 800mm (31 inches)

Internal heat load: 100 watts

Maximum Ambient: 70 deg. C (158 deg. F)

Required Internal Temp: 35 deg. C (95 deg. F)

NEMA Rating: NEMA 4X

Solenoid Voltage: 24Vdc

As an added note: they requested 316SS for anti-corrosion to be used for the Food and Beverage industry.

From my calculations, the ambient temperature was generating roughly 2,100 BTU/hr of heat on the external surface of the electrical cabinet.  The internal heat load was 100 watts or 341 BTU/hr.  Combining the values, the total heat load was 2,441 BTU/hr.  For the air conditioning units, they had to over-size the units to 8.000 BTU/hr of cooling capacity to remove 2,441 BTU/hr of heat.  This large difference is because of the high ambient conditions.  The EXAIR Cabinet Coolers do not have Freon to keep cool; so, the need to over-size is not necessary.  For the above electrical panels, I recommended a model HT4840SS-316-24VDC Cabinet Cooler System.  The cooling capacity is 2.800 BTU/hr, and it will keep the electrical components cool to 35 deg. C (95 deg. F) even during the hotter months of summer.

EXAIR NEMA Type 4/4X Cabinet Cooler System

With the EXAIR Cabinet Cooler Systems, we can offer a variety of different options to accommodate different applications.  For the food and beverage company above, the HT4840SS-316-24VDC was needed to meet the NEMA 4X rating of the panel and the 316SS construction for washdowns and corrosion resistance.  The “HT” at the beginning of the model number is for the High Temperature option.  This allows the Cabinet Cooler to operate in high ambient conditions between 52 deg. C to 93 deg. C (125 deg. F to 200 deg. F respectively).  The system comes with a filter, cold air distribution kit, a thermostat and a solenoid valve.  The thermostat is preset at 35 deg. C (95 deg. F) and operates the a 24Vdc solenoid valve to reduce compressed air consumption.  EXAIR stocks many different sizes and options to help reduce any downtime.  So, when an A/C system quits or an electrical panel faults out due to overheating, EXAIR can ship one out quickly to get the system up and running again.

If you have electrical panels over-heating or air conditioning units under-performing, you should try an EXAIR Cabinet Cooler.  You can fill out the Cabinet Cooler Sizing Guide and an Application Engineer can determine the best model to keep your operations running; even during the summer months.

 

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

 

Photo of Sun by Alexas_Fotos.  CCO Creative Commons

High Temperature Vortex Tube for Sensor Cooling

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Last year I worked with a power company that was having issues with Position Feedback Sensors overheating causing erroneous readings and early failures.  The sensors were located above a steam turbine, and the ambient temperatures reached 128°F with spikes to 140-150°F.  The customer had called in looking for a way to keep the sensors cool, using minimal compressed air, and in a robust package.  After reviewing the details, we recommended the High Temperature Vortex Tube, model HT3210.  While using just 10 SCFM of 100 PSIG compressed air, the HT3210 provides 8 SCFM of cold air at a temperature drop of 54°F from the supply air temperature.  Bathing the sensor with this cool air keeps prevents it from heating up and has eliminated the bad readings and prevented the early failures.

The customer recently implemented the same fix for another set of sensors.

Plant Photo
Power Generation Process, with (3) Position Feedback Sensors
Sensor
Position Feedback Sensor

The High Temperature Vortex Tube is a special Vortex Tube offering from EXAIR that utilizes a brass generator and hi-temp seal for use in ambient temperatures up to 200°F.  Simply supply clean, dry compressed air, and get cold air starting at 50-54°F lower than the supply air temperature.  With sizes ranging from 2 to 150 SCFM, there is a Vortex Tube that will meet most applications.

Vortex tube
High Temperature Vortex Tube

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

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer

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Air Amplifiers – Vent, Exhaust, Cool, Dry, Clean – With No Moving Parts!

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As an Application Engineer, one of the interesting aspects of working with customers on applications is the varied types of solutions an EXAIR product can provide.  The Air Amplifier family – Super Air Amplifier, Adjustable Air Amplifier, and the special High Temperature Air Amplifier can be used in a wide variety of process and applications.  Below highlights several of those from past experiences.

A defense contractor was performing maintenance service on a Navy ship, and the ventilation system had to be shut down.  To keep the personnel cool and safe, an auxiliary ventilation was to be supplied.  Rather than use a cumbersome blower assembly, which has to mounted on the top deck, and ducted down to the lower decks, they chose to utilize (2) 4″ Super Air Amplifiers.  They are very portable and can be set up in minutes.  This solution provided the necessary air flow, providing a safe environment for the maintenance crew.

Super Air Amplifier
EXAIR Air Amplifiers use a small amount of compressed air to create a tremendous amount of air flow.

A light bulb manufacturer needed a better solution for a cooling operation.  During manufacturing of a mercury lamp, the bulb must be cooled from 700°C to 600°C in just 15 seconds.  The current method, an open brass pipe, was working but the noise level was too high (95 dBA.) The goal was to maintain the 15 second cooling time, but reduce sound levels to 85 dBA.  By utilizing (2) of 3/4″ Adjustable Air Amplifiers, the customer was able to maintain the cooling rate, and reduce the noise level down to 80 dBA, a 15 dBA reduction.

adjustable Air Amplifier
Adjustable Air Amplifier

A garbage collector presented a problem that needed a solution.  The garbage was incinerated and when the furnaces were first started up, there tended to be issues with getting the flue to draft properly.  Using the High Temperature Air Amplifier, the high velocity air flow and draw provided the needed draft until the stack warmed up and the natural draft would be established.  Since the unit is capable of handling temperatures up to 700°F, it was able to withstand the heat of the process after the compressed air was turned off.

These and other Applications for the Air Amplifiers and all other EXAIR products can be found on the EXAIR website on the Products page, under the Related Info section toward the bottom of each page.

If you have questions regarding Air Amplifiers or 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

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Find us on the Web 
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Twitter: @EXAIR_BB

High Temperature Capability

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Last week, a customer called in to talk about their application.  After aluminum and steel machining operations, parts are run through a washer system. The drying portion utilized a Super Air Amplifier to dry the sides and a Super Air Knife to dry off the top. The wash temperature was running at 185°F.  The customer wanted to review the application and make sure the EXAIR products utilized in the process were rated to this temperature and to check on high the products could go, since the maximum possible temperature for the washer was listed as 250 °F.

air-knife-air-amplifer
Drying Section – Utilizing EXAIR Air Amplifier (near top) and Super Air Knife

The Super Air Amplifier is rated to 275°, above the maximum possible condition.  The Super Air Knife was pre-installed with a stainless steel shim, enabling a maximum temperature rating of 400 °F. Both of the components are rated for temperatures in excess of the maximum possible washer temperature condition, and the customer felt confident with the system design.

EXAIR has several options in the Air Amplifier and Super Air Knife product families to allow for operation in high temperature applications.  For the Air Amplifier, the Super Air Amplifier and Aluminum Adjustable Air Amplifier have a maximum temperature rating of 275°F.  The Stainless Steel Adjustable Air Amplifier is rated to 400°F, and for the hottest of conditions, the High Temperature Air Amplifier is rated to 700°F.

Relating to Super Air Knife, the aluminum Super Air Knife is rated to 180°F.  With a stainless steel shim installed, the maximum increases to 400°F. The PVDF Super Air Knife, used in applications where chemical resistance is needed, can withstand temperatures up to 275°F. And for the most extreme temperature environments, the Type 303 and Type 316 Stainless Steel Super Air Knives are rated up to 800°F.

To discuss your application and how an Air Amplifier and Super Air Knife or any EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product can help your process, feel free to contact EXAIR and 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