Tag: ventilation

Custom Air Amplifiers for Special Applications from EXAIR

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The EXAIR Super Air Amplifiers and Adjustable Air Amplifiers are used in 100’s if not 1000’s of applications and locations across the world.  For cooling, drying, and cleaning of parts as well as venting and exhausting of smokes and fumes, or dust collection – the Air Amplifiers are sure to get the job done.

The Super Air Amplifiers are made of aluminum and are sized from 3/4″ to 8″ to cover a wide range of applications. Compact and lightweight, no electricity, no moving parts, and instant on/off are just a few of the features.

The Adjustable Air Amplifiers are made of aluminum or type 303 stainless steel and are sized from 3/4″ to 4″, and with adjustable output, provide a wide spectrum of performance.  They have the same great features of the Super Air Amplifier with the added benefit of varying force and flow.

2″ Super Air Amplifier and 2″ Stainless Steel Adjustable Air Amplifier

Even with the wide variety of types, sizes, and materials of construction, a customer may have a special need and there are numerous ways that EXAIR can customize the Air Amplifiers.  I’ll touch on several from the basics to the most complex.

  • The Super Air Amplifiers come with a stock shim that sets the performance seen in the catalog. There are other shim thicknesses available if more or less flow is preferred, and they can be installed at the factory if desired.
  • The Adjustable Air Amplifiers are designed for varying output by turning the plug further in to or out of the body. If there is a performance setting that is preferred, we can test, adjust and set it to meet that performance, allowing to be installed and ready for optimum results.
  • If the use of a special material will increase the benefit of the Air Amplifier, we can explore several options with you. One customer needed an Adjustable Air Amplifier with a PTFE plug to help draw a sticky material through a process and prevent the material from adhering to the surface of the Air Amplifier.
  • For those applications where the Air Amplifier is to be installed into a piping system, custom design with flanged ends can be done. Recent designs include stainless steel Adjustable Air Amplifiers with class 150 raised face flanges, and another with sanitary Tri-Clamp style.

Adjustable Air Amplifier with PTFE Plug, Class 150 Raised Face and Sanitary Tri-Clamp Flanges

  • A special High Temperature version was developed for moving hot air to surfaces requiring uniform heating while in a furnace or oven. This special design is rated for environments up to 700°F and its surface is protected from heat stress by a mil-spec coating process.  This special High Temperature Air Air Amplifier was so popular, it became a standard offering and is in stock!

high temp air amplifier1-1/4″ High Temperature Air Amplifier

For over 35 years, EXAIR has been designing and manufacturing the best performing and highest quality products in the marketplace. If you have a special requirement and in need of a custom solution, we’ve got the experience and history to solve most problems.

If you have questions about Air Amplifiers, custom Air Amplifiers, or any of the 15 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.

Brian Bergmann
Application Engineer
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Super Air Amplifiers – Adjustability for Blowoff, Drying, Cooling, Circulation and Ventilation

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The Super Air Amplifier is a powerful, efficient, and quiet air mover. Applications currently in place include blowoff, drying, cooling, circulation and ventilation. Sizes from 3/4″ to 8″ are available to best match the air volume that is necessary to achieve the process goals. There are a couple of ways to change the performance of the Super Air Amplifier if either a small or large change to the output flow is required.AirAmplifiers

The chart below shows the Total Output Flow for each of the 6 models. As an example, the Model 120021 or 121021, when operated at 60 PSIG of compressed air supply, will have a total output flow of 120 SCFM. These same devices when operated at 80 PSIG will have a total flow of 146 SCFM. By simply using a pressure regulation device on the compressed air supply, the output performance can be tuned to match the desired outcome.

Capture

For those applications where much greater flow and/or force is needed, the option of installing a thicker shim is available.  The Super Air Amplifiers are supplied with a 0.003″ shim installed (the 8″ model 120028, has a 0.009″ shim as standard) and can be fitted with shims of thicknesses of 0.006″ or 0.009″ (the 8″ model has an optional 0.015″ shim.) Installation of a thicker shim increases the slotted air gap, allowing for a greater amount of controlled air flow.  As a general rule, doubling the shim thickness will double the air flow rates.

Super Air Amplifier Shims
Patented* Shim Design for Super Air Amplifiers

The Super Air Amplifier design provides for a constant, high velocity outlet flow across the entire cross sectional area,.  The balanced outlet flow minimizes wind shear to produce sound levels that are typically three times quieter than other air movers. By regulating the compressed air supply pressure and use of the optional shims, adjustability and flexibility of the unit is wide ranging and sure to meet your process needs.

If you have questions regarding the Super Air Amplifier, 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

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*Patent #5402938

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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Twitter: @EXAIR_BB

Special Air Amplifier? Not A Problem!

Published on by Dave WoernerLeave a comment

This week I worked with two customers that wanted to boost their air flow with an Air Amplifier. One customer ended up going with a Special Air Amplifier. The second customer I ended up pointing to a different product line entirely. Keep reading to find out why.

The first customer needed to boost the exhaust flow through six inch duct.  The six inch duct was an open vent that allowed fumes to slowly escape from a vessel. During normal operation the vessel, was unmanned, so the fumes only need a path to escape, but could linger. The company wanted to do some maintenance work in the area while the machine was in operation. The vent met the necessary requirements for the air flow of the machinery, but left maintenance workers exposed to a variety of fumes while working in the vessel, if the unit was in operation.

The customer was interested in the model 6034 Stainless Steel Air Amplifier. With 0.002″ air gap and 80 PSIG of inlet pressure, the unit will flow 1,200 SCFM of compressed air at the outlet of the Air Amplifier, but the 6034 can be adjusted to much higher flows from there.  The Air Amplifier would easily be able to exhaust the fumes from the area to maintain a safe and comfortable working environment. The problem was mounting the 6034 Adjustable Air Amplifier. The 6034 is designed to be used in free air with the discharge side of the air amplifier connecting to a duct. The suction side of the Air Amplifier is as open as possible to entrain air, but my customer needed to connect the Air Amplifier to the outlet of the vent. We worked with the customer on designing an Air Amplifier to fit the 6″ Flange that they used to connect sections of their duct similar to the Air Amplifier pictured below.

special air amplifier
This special stainless steel flange-mount Air Amplifier was designed for exhausting hot flue gases from a furnace.

My other customer called to move the air inside a heated drying tunnel. The customer uses a process air heater to heat a large drying tunnel. Unfortunately, the air heater created hot air at the entrance of the drying tunnel. By the time the air reached the end of the drying tunnel the temperature was significantly higher at the top of the tunnel as opposed to the bottom from natural convection. To counter this effect the customer wanted to move air from the process heater half way down the tunnel and release the air. In this application, the customer wanted to duct both the inlet and the outlet of an Air Amplifier. The Air Amplifier is not well suited for ducting and you limit the amount of air that the Air Amplifier can entrain by connecting it to a duct.

For this customer, I recommended he use a Line Vac. The Line Vac typically conveys materials, but it will also move a good amount of air.  The customer was going to use heated compressed air and wanted to convey the air from the process heater to the other side of the drying tunnel. Another key benefit to the Line Vac is the discharge and suction side of the units are both the same size.  This makes it extremely easy to install for the customer and is off the shelf, ready to ship.

Two similar applications on the surface that result in different product recommendation. Not every application for an air mover is this complicated, but if you want to talk through your application EXAIR’s application engineer’s will be happy to help.

Dave Woerner
Application Engineer
@EXAIR_DW
DaveWoerner@EXAIR.com