Tag: static eliminator

Top Ten Reasons Why EXAIR’s Super Air Knife Is So Super

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

1. Efficiency – With an air entrainment ratio of 40:1 (literally means it pulls in 40 SCFM of “free” air from the surrounding environment for every 1 SCFM of consumption), compressed air consumption is dramatically lower than any other blow off device.

EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Products such as (left to right) the Air Wipe, Super Air Knife, Super Air Nozzle, and Air Amplifier are engineered to entrain enormous amounts of air from the surrounding environment.

2. Laminar air flow – My colleague John Ball did a bang-up job in a video blog explaining the fluid mechanics theory behind this. Operationally, laminar flow is is beneficial because it’s particularly conducive to generating a stripping or sweeping action, as opposed to the turbulent flow from an open blow off, a blower, or a fan.

3. Quiet operation – The high entrainment ratio that makes the Super Air Knife so efficient also makes for amazingly low sound levels. The outermost entrained air creates a boundary layer that attenuates the sound level of the higher velocity, hard hitting center flow.

4. Lengths available – Super Air Knives are stocked in lengths from 3″ to 9ft. Custom lengths can be made if you’re space-limited for installation, and custom shims can be installed if you want to shorten the curtain width of a stock Super Air Knife. Super Air Knives can also be coupled together for even longer lengths.

Air Knife Coupling Bracket Kits are available from stock for Aluminum, 303SS, and 316SS Super Air Knives.

5. Material of construction – No matter how aggressive the environment is, odds are, EXAIR has a Super Air Knife that’ll hold up to it. Durable aluminum models are good to 180°F (82°C). There are also two Types of Stainless Steel to choose from: 303SS for high strength, and 316SS for protection from chloride pitting corrosion & higher strength. Both 303SS & 316SS are good to 800°F (427°C). For exceptionally harsh environments, PVDF (Polyvinylidene Fluoride) constructed Super Air Knives have Hastelloy C-276 hardware & PTFE shims, which are resistant to UV light, inorganic chemicals, solvents, ozone, weather, fungi, chlorinated hydrocarbons, highly corrosive acids, weak bases, and salts. They’re good to 275°F (135°C).

6. Easy installation – Like all of our products, the Super Air Knives – from the 3″ to the 9ft models – are “user friendly” as far as mounting & installation goes. The Model 9060 Universal Air Knife Mounting System makes for quick installation and easy positioning. 24″ to 42″ Super Air Knives need to be plumbed to both ends…if you hard pipe the air supply, the Super Air Knife itself will essentially be as well supported as the piping. The same holds true for longer Super Air Knives with Plumbing Kits installed. 3″ Super Air Knives can even be fitted with Stay Set Hoses, and Magnetic Bases. And the 1/4″-20 tapped holes on the bottom of the body allow for a wide range of mounting solutions…anything you can put a bolt through, really.

The 9060 Universal Air Knife Mounting Systems are perfect for simple, fast installation and positioning.
Yes, that’s a door hinge. No, it wasn’t my idea ( but I kind of wish it was.)

7. Low maintenance – With no moving parts, they’ll run darn near indefinitely, maintenance free, as long as you supply them with clean, moisture free compressed air. Oh, and keep them clean, externally, if they’re in an area where environmental contaminants can build up on the precision finished surfaces that are essential to their air entrainment.

8. Reliability – Hand in hand with #7, no moving parts also means there’s not much that can stop them from working. They can operate continuously, if needed, or you can cycle them on & off as frequently as necessary to keep from using valuable compressed air, except when needed.

EXAIR’s award winning EFC Electronic Flow Control can be set to operate a Super Air Knife (or any of our Intelligent Compressed Air Products) in cycles as low as 0.1 seconds.

9. Static Eliminator option -The laminar, high velocity air flow is ideal for many blow off applications, but if static charge is a problem, an Ionizing Bar can be installed, turning the Super Air Knife into a Super Ion Air Knife:

10. Free stuff – OK; this last one is “super” for a limited time. Order a Super Air Knife between 11/1/22 and 12/31/2022, and get a FREE Safety Air Gun. Click here for details.

If you’d like to find out how the Super Air Knife – or any of our Intelligent Compressed Air Products can help you get the most out of your compressed air system, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife Cleans Art!

Published on by Jordan T ShouseLeave a comment

I took a phone call recently from an artist who applies thin colored films to glass sheets. He then uses several panes of that colored glass to build beautiful simplistic art installations! They are so clean and clear every angle you look through you get a different color and view you wouldn’t expect. But he was having a problem, these sheets of glass were building a large static charge and making every bit of dust and dirt stick to the surface. They were spending countless hours painstakingly cleaning every panel of glass because one spec of dirt would ruin the end goal.

Colored Glass Walk Way

Originally they called in to look at the Super Air Knife, which is good to remove dirt, dust and debris – but does not eliminate static if that debris were to be held on to the glass with static. His idea was to poor water on the glass then use the Super Air Knife to blow the water off, messy but they were hoping to kill two birds with one stone. Getting rid of the static and cleaning the glass all at once. He was excited when I told him about out our GEN4 Super ION Air Knife! It would have the ability to neutralize the static charge and blow away any debris clinging to the surface.

The Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife floods an area or surface with static eliminating ions. With a uniform airflow across its length, misalignment to critical surfaces, like a web, is avoided.  The force can be adjusted from a light breeze, to a full out blast of air. The Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife is electrically powered, is shockless and has no moving parts.

How It Works

gen4siak_hwrks_800x
How The Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife Works

In the diagram above, compressed air flows through an inlet (1) into the plenum chamber of the Gen4 Super Ion Air Knife. The flow is directed to a precise, slotted orifice. As the primary airflow exits, it creates a uniform sheet of air across the entire length, pulling in in surrounding air (2). An electrically powered Gen4 Ionizing Bar (3) fills the curtain of air with positive and negative charges. The air stream delivers the static eliminating ions to the product surface (4) where it instantly neutralizes static and cleans off dust and other particulates.

The Gen4 Super Ion Air Knives are powerful tools, and very quickly dissipates 5kV of static even at low compressed air supply pressures. At 5 PSIG, only 3.7 SCFM (0.3 BAR, only 105 SLPM) of compressed air per foot of length is required!!  Sound levels are also very low, resulting in quiet operation.

super ion air knife performance

Added Features –

  • Compressed Air Inlets are provided on each end and the bottom of the Super Air Knife
  • Thicker shims can be installed easily if more force is needed.
  • Emitter points are durable stainless steel
  • The high voltage cable is armored to resist cuts and abrasion, and has integral grounding.  Threaded bayonet connector is fully assembled and ready to use
  • Electromagnetically shield cable protects sensitive electronics
  • Gen4 Ionizing Bars and Power Supplies are UL Component Recognized to U.S and Canadian safety standards and are CE and RoHS compliant
  • Power Supplies are 115/230 VAC selectable and come with 2 or 4 outlets
  • Standard lengths from 3″ to 108″ (76mm to 2743mm) are offered, and custom lengths are available to meet your process needs

Successful applications include web cleaning, pre-paint dust removal, shrink wrapper machinery, printing equipment, package cleaning,and bag opening/filling operations.

If you have questions about Gen4 Super Ion Air Knives, other types of Static Elimination products,  or any of the 16 different EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air® Product lines, feel free to contact EXAIR and myself or any of our Application Engineers can help you determine the best solution.

Jordan Shouse
Application Engineer

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Image courtesy of Jared Yeh Rainbow Panorama, Creative Commons License Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)

EXAIR Case Study Library: Help Me Help You

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

EXAIR Corporation has a broad range of resources to aid in the selection of the right product for the right application:

If you’re a regular reader of EXAIR blogs, you’ve seen a number of “brags” on the successful implementation of just about all of our products. Another “more” part of our website is Applications, where you’ll find WAY more brief summaries of EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Product successes than we can fit in our catalog. These come from conversations, emails, and oftentimes shared photos or videos between EXAIR Application Engineers and our customers. We get to write those up as examples of our products making things better. On the occasions where the customer is willing to work with us to quantify how MUCH better our products have made things, we’re able to do a Case Study. A typical Case Study involves collection of “before/after” data, quantifying the benefits of using EXAIR products. This can include, but is not necessarily limited to :

  • Compressed air consumption
  • Noise level
  • Safety (OSHA compliance)
  • Performance improvements
  • Product durability/longevity

At last count, there are over forty entries in our Case Study Library. You can search these by Product, or by Application…depending on what, specifically, you’d like to know. Registration (free and easy) is required to access our Case Studies…if you’re already registered & signed in, you can read the details on any of them. For your immediate viewing, though, here are the pertinent details on just a few:

“Before/After” photos of this efficient and quiet upgrade.
  • More durable and efficient Safety Air Guns: This customer’s main concern was the durability of the air gun they were using. This was a situation where they sent one in for Efficiency Lab testing (that’s one of the ways we can help collect “before” data for a Case Study). I did this one, and the customer’s air gun’s trigger BROKE WHILE I WAS TESTING IT. In addition to providing a more durable product (a Model 1310 Heavy Duty Safety Air Gun, specifically), it also reduced the compressed air consumption from 63.5 SCFM to 14 SCFM, and the sound level dropped from 89.9dBA to just 74dBA.
EXAIR Safety Air Guns: rugged construction, quiet & efficient performance.
Static charge from simple contact between this injection molded plastic part & the mold caused defects in a subsequent metallic coating process (left,) which were eliminated after an EXAIR Super Ion Air Knife was installed (right.)

So, back to the title of this blog…how can you “help me help you” with a Case Study? Let’s start with that 2nd part. Upon successful completion of a Case Study, I can “help you” with a credit on the order you placed for the EXAIR product(s) that replaced what you were using before, or a discount on a subsequent order…if, for example you got a Super Ion Air Knife to try out on one of your headlight making machines, and it worked so good you want to put them on the other nine machines (true story).

The “help me” part is pretty easy too. If you have instrumentation (air flow meters, sound level meters, etc.) to gather the “before” data, we can use that for the Case Study. If you don’t, we do. You can send the subject devices in for Efficiency Lab testing…our engineering staff will use calibrated test equipment to work up a detailed performance profile on what you send in. It’s a free service we offer to anyone who wants this data, in fact, and Efficiency Lab testing has no effect on the credits or discounts we offer for participation in a Case Study.

I also “help you” (and “help me”) by keeping your name, and your company’s name, off the Case Study. That way, if your process or product is proprietary in nature, we don’t risk sharing your hard earned success with your competition. We also don’t run afoul of the authorities, like this one last Case Study I’m going to share, where a machine shop was blowing off parts they make for the military that are classified in nature. They had crimped copper tubing pointed at the cutting tool, and it worked…it was just loud and wasteful. They zipped the crimped ends off and installed Model 1100 Super Air Nozzles with a simple compression fitting. Had the photo below shown the machined part in the lathe chuck, “we’re ALL going to prison” according to the customer:

One well-cropped photo made for a great Case Study, and nobody had to go to prison. THAT was a good deal.

This one, by the way, saved 2.7 SCFM per nozzle (over $840.00 a year in compressed air savings), and reduced the sound level from 96dBA to only 76dBA.

EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Products have been making things better for compressed air users for almost forty years. If you’d like to find out how MUCH better we can make things for you, give me a call.

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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More And More Award Winning Products From EXAIR

Published on by Russ BowmanLeave a comment

As you might expect, a LOT of things have changed at EXAIR Corporation since 1983. Most of our current senior management had yet to graduate high school, and a fair number of current employees had yet to BE BORN. According to our computer system (another BIG change since 1983), our first ten customers were here in southwest Ohio (#11 was in Michigan), and now, we sell direct across the US & Canada, and our worldwide distributor network offers representation on six continents. One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is our founder’s vision of manufacturing quiet, safe, & efficient compressed air products for process improvement in just about any industry that uses compressed air. And THAT, dear reader, continues to gain high profile attention. The photo above shows the seven awards that our products have recently won, which were announced in 2021 or early 2022. Here’s a rundown:

Plant Engineering 2020 Product of the Year (Fluid Handling) GOLD AWARD:
1/2 NPT No Drip External Mix Air Atomizing Spray Nozzles

No Drip External Mix Atomizing Spray Nozzles

The 1/2 NPT models are the latest addition to our newest product line. The External Mix version offers the highest liquid flow rate, and largest pattern coverage. Among the applications where they’ve excelled so far are:

  • Snack food provider – applying flavoring to bulk snack materials.
  • Commercial bakery – spraying cooking oil onto pans used in a conveyor oven.
  • Sporting goods manufacturer – applying adhesive to the tops of skateboard decks to glue the grip tape on.

Plant Engineering 2020 Product of the Year (Material Handling Systems) GOLD AWARD:
2-1/2 NPT 303SS Threaded Line Vac™

EXAIR's Threaded Line Vac Family
EXAIR Threaded Line Vac + Your Pipe + Compressed Air = Instant Conveyor System

For bulk material conveyance, it really doesn’t get any simpler than EXAIR Air Operated Conveyors. Stainless Steel models are especially popular when the environment – or the product – is corrosive, or hot…they’re good to 400F (204C), and can even be modified with High Temperature components for exposure up to 900F (482C). The Threaded versions have been successfully used to:

  • Recycle sprinkles applied to wafers into a return hopper in a candy production facility.
  • Replacing an auger conveyor to allow for homogenous mixing of grains & supplements in feed stock at an agricultural mill.
  • Providing a low cost solution to convey product into a hopper at a grain processing plant.

Plant Engineering 2020 Product of the Year (Maintenance Tools & Equipment) SILVER AWARD
Occupational Health & Safety 2021 New Product of the Year (Industrial Hygiene-Dust Control) WINNER
Occupational Health & Safety 2021 New Product of the Year (Health & Safety/Cleanup) PLATINUM
EasySwitch® Wet-Dry Vac

Like our Spray Nozzles product line, our Industrial Housekeeping Products line has also grown considerably over the years. The Deep Hole Vac-u-Gun and Heavy Duty HEPA Vac were real game changers when they came along, and the EasySwitch® Wet-Dry Vac Systems are likewise making an impact. Switching from wet to dry operation is, as advertised in the name itself, INCREDIBLY easy. Among our satisfied customers are:

Occupational Health & Safety 2021 New Product of the Year (Lab Safety) WINNER
Intellistat® Ion Air Gun™

The newest innovation in a long line of EXAIR static elimination solutions, the Model 8500 Intellistat® Ion Air Gun is made for laboratories, clean rooms, medical & electronic applications, and carries an ISO 14644-1 Class 5 rating for clean room use. Because of their rapid decay rates and lightweight construction, they’re used in a diverse range of applications and areas, including:

  • A supplier of fiberoptic parts uses an Intellistat® to remove dust and static charge from product prior to packaging.
  • A medical device manufacturer has one in a Class 7 clean room for silicone parts cleanliness.
  • A nutritional supplements maker uses their Intellistat® to remove static charge & powder residue from the tops of plastic bags before sealing them. The excess/residual powder causes them not to seal correctly.

Machine Design 2021 Big Idea! (Electrical Components) BRONZE AWARD
Gen4® Static Eliminator Power Supply

All EXAIR Gen4 Static Eliminators use one of two Power Supplies – your choice of the 2-port Model 7960, or the 4-port Model 7961.

EXAIR Static Eliminators produce ionized air via a Corona discharge, which requires high voltage, low current electricity. The Gen4® Static Eliminator Products feature armored & shielded cables with an internal ground, for safety and reliability. The ground path is completed through the cable and the Power Supply port, eliminating the need for an external ground connection. Faults in external ground connections result in the majority of the problems with those devices, so the internal ground is a “Big Idea!” indeed. The Gen4® Static Eliminator Power Supplies are switchable for 115VAC or 230VAC voltages, and are offered in 2, or 4 outlet designs, which can power any 2, or 4 EXAIR Static Eliminator Products. Like most EXAIR Intelligent Compressed Air Products, they’re used for a wide range of applications, in a wide range of industries:

If you’d like to find out more about these, or any of our other engineered compressed air products (we’re pretty proud of them all), give me a call. I can talk about them all day long…and sometimes I do!

Russ Bowman, CCASS

Application Engineer
EXAIR Corporation
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