Tag: leak detection

Ultrasonic Leak Detectors

Published on by bdwagesLeave a comment

With energy bills skyrocketing, it becomes critical to stop the waste. Air leaks are a constant part of any compressed air system. If you do not own an Ultrasonic Leak Detector, you are throwing money away. As air lines age, leaks happen. Rust erodes the pipes. Curves, twists and turns lead to weak joints. Fittings (especially push-in fittings) and other pipe connections will degrade and begin to leak. Day-to-day wear and tear, bumps and bruises will all cause small air leaks over time. Having an air leak in your system is similar to having a running toilet in your home. You won’t see any visible damage, but when you get that utility bill!

EXAIR Ultrasonic Leak Detector

It can be difficult to find the leaks in a large facility. The air lines could run a long way, with multiple twists and turns within your system. The area can be loud, and leaks can be very quiet… Of course the large leaks are easy to identify, see, hear and feel. But many leaks are very small, hard to locate and the noise form these leaks can be “Ultrasonic sound”, meaning that they are at a frequency between 20kHz and 100kHz, and cannot be heard by the human ear. To find these small leaks and to hear Ultrasonic sounds, you will need an Ultrasonic Leak Detector.

With this precision tool, you will be able to both hear and see where the leaks are. As you pass the Detector across the pipes the alarm lights will glow and grow, and if you have the noise canceling headphones on, you will also be able to hear the leak.

Here is an example of how costly 1 small 1/16th” leak can be:

Reach out today to discuss or order one of these money savings jewels, or any of our other intelligent compressed air products.

Thank you for stopping by,

Brian Wages

Application Engineer

EXAIR Corporation
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Determining Leakage Rate and Cost of Compressed Air Leaks

Published on by Tyler DanielLeave a comment

The electricity costs associated with the generation of compressed air make it the most expensive utility within an industrial environment. In a   poorly maintained compressor system, up to 30% of the total operational costs can be attributed simply to compressed air leaks. While this wasted energy is much like throwing money into the air, it can also cause your compressed air system to lose pressure. This can reduce the ability of the end use products to function properly, negatively impacting production rates and overall quality. Luckily, it’s quite easy to estimate the leakage rate and is something that you should be including in your regular PM schedule.

According to the Compressed Air Challenge, a well-maintained system should have a leakage rate of less than 5-10% of the average system demand. To estimate what your leakage rate is across the facility, first start by shutting off all of the point of use compressed air products so that there’s no demand on the system. Then, start the compressor and record the average time it takes for the compressor to cycle on/off. The compressor will load and unload as the air leaks cause a pressure drop from air escaping. The percentage of total leakage can be calculated using the following formula:

Leakage % = [(T x 100) / (T + t)]

Where:

T = loaded time (seconds)

T = unloaded time (seconds)

The leakage rate will be given in a percentage of total compressor capacity lost. This value should be less than 10% for a well-maintained system. It is not uncommon within a poorly maintained system to experience losses as high as 20-40% of the total capacity and power.

A leak that is equivalent to the size of a 1/16” diameter hole will consume roughly 3.8 SCFM at a line pressure of 80 PSIG. If you don’t know your company’s air cost, a reasonable average is $0.25 per 1,000 SCF. Let’s calculate what the cost would be for a plant operating 24hrs a day, 7 days a week.

3.8 SCFM x 60 minutes x $0.25/1,000 SCFM =

$0.06/hour

$0.06 x 24 hours =

$1.44/ day

$1.44 x 7 days x 52 weeks =

$524.16 per year

A small leak of just 3.8 SCFM would end up costing $524.16. This is just ONE small leak! Odds are there’s several throughout the facility, quickly escalating your operating costs. If you can hear a leak, it’s a pretty severe one. Most leaks aren’t detectable by the human ear and require a special instrument to convert the ultrasonic sound created into something that we can pick up. For that, EXAIR has our Model 9061 Ultrasonic Leak Detector.

ULD_Pr
Model 9061 ULD w/ parabola attachment checking for compressed air leaks

Implementing a regular procedure to determine your leakage rate in the facility as well as a compressed air audit to locate, tag, and fix any known leaks should be a priority. The savings that you can experience can be quite dramatic, especially if it’s not something that has ever been done before!

Tyler Daniel
Application Engineer
E-mail: TylerDaniel@exair.com
Twitter: @EXAIR_TD

Top Ten Preventive Maintenance Items For Compressed Air Systems

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

Anything that has moving parts is, sooner or later, going to need maintenance.  One popular school of thought is “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”  One major problem with that is, when it DOES break, you HAVE to fix it before you can keep using it.  That’s where preventive maintenance comes in: you get to choose WHEN you work on it.  This allows you to do that work at planned times that are convenient, and that have the least impact on your operations.

Patrick Duff, a production equipment mechanic with the 76th Maintenance Group, takes meter readings of the oil pressure and temperature, cooling water temperature and the output temperature on one of two 1,750 horsepower compressors. Each compressor is capable of producing 4,500 cubic feet of air at 300 psi. The shop also has a 3,000 horsepower compressor that produces 9,000 cubic feet of air at 300 psi. By matching output to the load required, the shop is able to shut down compressors as needed, resulting in energy savings to the base. (Air Force photo by Ron Mullan)

Compressed air systems not only have moving parts, they have parts that air moves through.  Periodic preventive maintenance can not only keep your system running; it’ll keep it running efficiently, meaning it costs less to operate.  Different types of air compressors in different environments will have different specific requirements, but following is a decent general list of ten items it might make sense to stay on top of:

  1. Intake vents. The air your compressor pulls in is going to go through some pretty tight passages.  Particulate can do some damage in there, and some of it will end up in your system where it’ll wreak havoc on your air operated equipment too.  Take care to keep your air compressor’s intake vents clean.  Many manufacturers and service professionals recommend a weekly inspection, and cleaning as needed.
  2. Lubrication.  Don’t be fooled by the term “oil-less” in an air compressor’s description.  This often means that there’s no oil in the air end.  The drive end is going to have bearings & moving parts that are lubricated.  Again, the compressor manufacturer will likely include periodicity and procedure for this in the manual.  This should include period oil (and oil filter) changes or grease renewal.
  3. Motor bearings.  Many air compressors are either direct coupled or belt driven by an electric motor.  Checking the temperature with a contact thermometer, or monitoring for changes in the ultrasonic signature (EXAIR Model 9061 Ultrasonic Leak Detector is a quick & easy way to do this) can give you indication of pending bearing failure.
  4. Belts.  Drive belts have a finite life span.  Vibration can also affect their tension and alignment.  If you have a belt driven compressor, check these out on a regular basis to make proper adjustments to the motor slide base.
  5. Lubrication, part 2. A friend of mine had a car that leaked oil.  He carried a couple of quarts with him…it was so bad that he had to add some every few days.  He called this replenishment system “self-changing oil”.  It isn’t.  Finding and fixing oil leaks is critical from both operational and housekeeping perspectives.
  6. Dryer.  Most industrial air compressors have a system that removes moisture from the compressed air before discharging into the system.  Different types of dryers require different types of maintenance.  Desiccant and deliquescent dryers, for example, will require media changes from time to time.  Refrigerated and membrane dryers will have parts like condensers or cartridges that you have to keep clean.  Keep up with the manufacturer’s recommendations, and you’ll have one less thing to worry about.
  7. Air leaks.  Air is free.  It’s literally everywhere, in great abundance.  COMPRESSED air is expensive, which makes leaks costly.  Good news is, compressed air leaks, like failing motor bearings (see #3, above) generate an ultrasonic signature, so you can get even more use out of an EXAIR Model 9061 Ultrasonic Leak Detector.  Find & fix leaks, and start saving money today.

    In addition to compressed air leaks, there are many industrial maintenance applications for Ultrasonic Leak Detectors. Contact an EXAIR Application Engineer for details.
  8. Filtration. Almost all pneumatically operated products work best with clean, moisture free air.  The compressor’s intake vents (see #1 above) and dryer (see #6 above) are there, primarily, to protect the compressor and the distribution system, respectively.  Good engineering practice dictates the need for point-of-use filtration.  EXAIR Automatic Drain Filter Separators have 5-micron particulate elements, and a centrifugal element to ‘spin’ out moisture.  Our Oil Removal Filters have coalescing elements to catch any trace of oil, and provide additional particulate filtration to 0.03 microns.  As filter elements capture debris, they start to clog, which reduces downstream pressure.  You should change these elements when the pressure drop across a filter reaches 5psi.
  9. Condensate drains.  Even the best dryers allow trace amounts of moisture into the compressed air system…even more so if the humidity in the area is high.  Properly designed compressed air distribution systems will have strategically placed drain traps to collect this moisture and rid the system of it.  They can be automatic, timed, or manual.  Inspect them periodically for proper operation
  10. Compressed air operated products.  Last but not least, make sure you keep up the maintenance on the tools and equipment that your compressed air system is there for in the first place.  Worn or damaged parts can increase consumption…and present very real safety risks.

EXAIR Corporation manufactures quiet, safe, and efficient compressed air products to help you get the most out of your compressed air system.  If you’d like to find out more, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Leaks and Why They Matter

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

Leaks can be discussed quite frequently around industrial environments. These can be refrigerant leaks, water leaks, gas leaks, even information leaks. All of these leaks have one thing in common, they all cost the company money in the end. I often think about several classic cartoons when I hear about leaks being fixed as they are found. They can become a little overwhelming like the “Squirrel” from the movie Ice Age 2.

1 – Ice Age 2 – Scrat – Mission Impossible

When it comes down to it, not many leaks create good results, that is why I want to take a second and educate on the costs your facility may be seeing from compressed air leaks. The leaks within an industrial environment can often account for up to 30% of the total compressed air generated.

So let’s take a look at that, the cost of compressed air is derived from the kWh cost the facility pays to the utility company. Here in the Midwest the average cost is around $0.08 / kWh. The equation to convert this to cost per cubic foot of compressed air is shown below. This formula assumes that the compressor generates four standard cubic feet of compressed air per horsepower of compressor. Again this is an industry acceptable assumption.

The size of a leak will determine how much compressed air is wasted, most of these leaks are not even to the audible range for the human ear which leads them to be undetected for long periods of time. A leak that is equivalent to a 1/16″ diameter orifice can result in an annual loss of more than $836.50 USD. While the scale of this number when compared to the annual revenue of a company may be small, the fact remains that this single leak would more than likely not be the only one. This isn’t the only way leaks will cost money though.

Leaks can also generate false demand which can result in pressure drops on a system. When the pressure on a production line drops this could result in unscheduled shutdowns. Often, when a pressure drop is observed the quick answer is to increase the header pressure which causes even more energy to be utilized and even more compressed air will be pushed out of these leaks. That increase in system pressure comes at a price as well. When increasing a system pressure by 2 psi the compressor will consume an additional percent of total input power. This again will hit the bottom line and result in lower efficiency of operation for the facility.

If you hear that distinct hiss of compressed air leaks when you are walking through your facility, or even if you don’t hear the his and you know that a leak detection action plan is not being practiced and want to find out the best ways to get one in place, contact us. We are always willing to help you determine how to lower the leaks in your facility as well as reduce the system pressure required to keep your lines up and running by implementing engineered solutions at the point of use.

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

1 – Ice Age 2 – Mission Impossible Scrat – retrieve from YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-HniegbnFs