Industrial Utility Efficiency

Air Compressors

Best Practices 2024 EXPO & Conference Show Report

By Troy Dreier, Senior Editor, and Brooke Jones, Digital Content Editor, Compressed Air Best Practices® Magazine 

From October 29-31, 2024, professionals who operate, maintain and design industrial compressed air, vacuum, blower, nitrogen generation, process cooling and HVAC systems gathered at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, GA, for the 6th annual Best Practices 2024 EXPO & Conference. The event featured two tracks of conference presentations and panels.

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Extend Air Compressor Life with Proper Preventive Maintenance

By Derrick Taylor, PneuTech, USA

When you take care of your air compressor, it will continue to take care of you. Following the recommended preventive maintenance procedures as outlined by the manufacturer will extend the life of your air compressor, save energy costs and reduce the risk of unexpected downtime. Here’s what facility managers should know about air compressor preventive maintenance — and when to call the experts.
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What’s Possible When Operating Rotary Screw Air Compressors in Hot Ambient Conditions?

By Sullair

There are times when rotary screw air compressors must operate in high ambient temperatures, leaving questions about the impact on these vital machines. What follows is an overview of what’s possible in these conditions, along with advice for ensuring the optimal performance of these air compressors in hot ambient conditions. Although all air compressors compress air, there is a difference in how centrifugal, oil flooded rotary screw, oil free rotary screw, piston and scroll machines compress air. Because this article focuses on rotary screw air compressors, it’s important to know the difference between oil free and oil flooded air compressors. This can be understood in part by looking at the actual air compressor component, which is often referred to the “airend”. 
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A Technician’s Guide to Lubricant Base Stocks

By Isel Inc.

Lubricants play a critical role in the safe, efficient, and a reliable operation of oil-flooded rotary screw air compressors. There are many factors to contemplate during the selection process, such as inlet air quality, temperature, and cost. One key factor often not given enough consideration is how the selected product will affect the maintenance cycle, and how these costs can be put into perspective. Presented here a review of available options, and how base stock selection can affect the maintenance of an air compressor.
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Care for Your Air: A Guide to Air Compressor Maintenance

By Zack Barnes, Sauer Compressors USA

Your industrial compressed air and gas system constitutes a major investment and a significant contributor to operating efficiently and productively. Keeping your air compressor in peak condition should be high on your list of maintenance activities. Fortunately, these industrial workhorses do not require a lot of costly or time-consuming resources to keep performing year after year. Still, performing a few routine checks, tests, cleanings, and adjustments will go a long way toward keeping your air and gas compressors in fine condition, generating a host of benefits.
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Lubricant Chemistry and Oil/Water Separator Performance

By SA Performance

Air compressors can produce a lot of water. Humidity in ambient air, once compressed, results in much of this water falling out, which we know as condensate. On a warm and humid summer day with inlet air temperatures of 80°F, a 75-horsepower (hp) air compressor running fully loaded can produce over 25 gallons of condensate in just one eight-hour shift, with another five gallons being produced once the compressed air is sent through a dryer. The compression process allows for the air, water vapor, and lubricating fluids to mix. Once the condensate leaves the system, trace amounts of lubricant travel with it. This condensate should be processed through an oil-water separator before being discharged to groundwater or wastewater treatment plants.
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How to Avoid Control Gap with VFD Rotary Screw Air Compressors

By Tim Dugan, P.E., Compression Engineering Corporation

Air compressors need to be matched to load effectively and efficiently. If the air compressors’ range of variation can’t be matched to the system variation, instability and/or inefficiency can result. This article discusses the problem when it isn’t matched, which is called “control gap” and what to do to avoid it.
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Avoiding Control Gap with Centrifugal Air Compressors

By Tim Dugan, P.E., Compression Engineering Corporation

Have you ever wondered how to stay “in control” of an engineering organization with a fixed staff and a varying workload, where the engineers all have a mind of their own? “Herding cats” is what they call it.  Of course, that’s normal, right? Well, controlling multiple centrifugal air compressors is pretty close to that model, which can lead to a condition known as “control gap.”  This article discusses the reasons for control gap with centrifugal air compressors and solutions to help avoid it.
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Fifteen Years of Compressed Air Best Practices Support Gentex Business and Production Goals

By John Bilsky, MWS, CCAS, Gentex Corporation

While many businesses strive to plan, install and maintain a compressed air system that fulfils the company’s specific needs, I’ve found that implementing compressed air best practices not only accomplishes specific goals, but also results in time-tested advantages that aid in the overall business and production goals of the organization.
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Compressed Air System Upgrades Need Follow-up Attention at Food Operation

By Ron Marshall, Marshall Compressed Air Consulting

There is usually a deep feeling of pride welling up inside the designers and installers after completing the installation of a new compressed air system, especially if it starts up and works perfectly. But what happens after a few years, are things as perfect as at the start? This is a question with an answer that very few people know for their system. This article describes some interesting experiences with a food products company at two plants where compressed air assessments of optimized systems done a few years after the system upgrades showed problems.
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