While compressed air is used widely as a safe and versatile source of power, generating what is often referred to as the fourth utility, it is also very energy intensive. Nicola Curtis explores how new products are assisting in the reduction of carbon emissions as well as saving money.
Based just outside Norwich, Condimentum is a new and expanding business which creates natural food ingredients from mustard, mint and horseradish grown by local farmers, many of whose families have been supplying Colman’s of Norwich for generations.
The company resides in a purpose-built factory kitted out with the latest manufacturing equipment. And, as one of only three facilities worldwide capable of producing the magic ingredient in Colman’s iconic English mustard, double superfine mustard flour, it has also taken care to instal an air compression system which will perform at the highest level.
In their search for a system which would generate clean, dry, and reliable compressed air, removing any risk of lost production or product spoilage while optimising energy efficiency, Condimentum settled on one of the latest products from HPC KAESER.
The system
The HPC compressed air system provides sustained delivery pressure to the factory processing equipment (7.5 bar at plant room exit) and the compressed air management and control system intelligently selects compressors to avoid pressure dips on start-up. There is also remote access and control.
HPC installed the latest HPC KAESER ASK40 air-cooled rotary screw compressor, each with a capacity of 4.06 m3/min or 143 cfm to provide a dependable source of energy-efficient, quality compressed air that delivers the required volumes day in, day out, and around the clock if necessary.
Integrated intelligence
The units are inter-linked via a communication cable and configured to work on a programmed duty/rotate cycle. The SIGMA control system optimises energy efficiency, particularly in partial load operation.
The installation also features HPC KAESER refrigerant dryers to reduce the pressure dew point of the air to 3°C to remove any moisture and a 2,000 litre capacity galvanised steel vertical air receiver for compressed air storage. A point of use desiccant dryer further reduces the pressure dew point of the air to -40°C, a critical requirement for the system.
“Customers are increasingly focused on energy efficiency, both to control costs and reduce their impact on the world’s natural resources.
“The result at Condimentum is an effective, energy-efficient compressed air system that successfully meets their demands and lowers their environmental impact,” said Mark Jackson, director of business development, HPC.
Modular system
While Condimentum operates from a new, purpose-built processing facility, there are other businesses which need to function in outdoor, corrosive, or remote locations. To cater to this market, Atlas Copco has introduced AIRCUBE, a modular containerised compressor room with top-quality components assembled to customers’ individual requirements.
The plug-and-play AIRCUBE is not only an instant solution for industry operations on difficult sites but also for businesses that need to quickly ramp up production without having to deal with building permits and long waiting times.
This has certainly been the case over the last year for companies which have had to boost production so significantly to meet soaring demand for products like hand sanitiser, they have been unable to manage with just their existing equipment.
Quality control
In these situations, it’s important that the quality of the compressed air is comparable to the existing system. All components of an AIRCUBE containerised compressor room have already been CE-certified and thoroughly tested. In addition, as all the equipment comes from a single source, there are no compatibility problems, which further increases reliability.
Energy efficiency is also vital. Customers looking to expand production can still reduce energy consumption by choosing to equip their AIRCUBE with energy-efficient variable speed drive compressors ranging from 30 l/s up to 700 l/s. A wide array of other options are also available including environmental add-ons, smart connectivity and control features.
“For some companies, an indoor compressor room is out of the question. To meet their compressed air requirements, we have launched AIRCUBE to provide companies with a ready-made, containerised compressor room that is tailored to their needs – regardless of which industry they operate in and what their requirements are,” says Stef Lievens, business line manager, industrial air at Atlas Copco Compressors UK.
Customers are increasingly focused on energy efficiency, both to control costs and reduce their impact on the world’s natural resources.
Mark Jackson, director of business development, HPC
All compressed air systems have leaks. This is even true of new ones. While leakage rates are 25% on average, they can reach as much as 80% in some plants. This has significant cost implications as a single 3mm diameter hole in a compressed air pipe can waste £1,000 or more annually in electricity bills. Conversely, air leak detection surveys can facilitate significant energy bill reductions.
Atlas Copco’s air leak detection survey operates by building a profile of the energy wasted through air leakage within a compressed air system.
By finding, logging, quantifying and costing air leaks, the survey allows plant managers and energy specialists to prioritise the remedial work required to reduce their energy costs.
The best and most popular survey approach is to use ultrasonic leak detection equipment. It operates without interrupting plant production, reaches system areas that are hard to access and locates all air leaks. Atlas Copco is now achieving this using a state-of-the-art acoustic imaging camera which can help detect leaks in compressed air systems up to 10 times faster than traditional methods.
The camera takes measurements with 124 microphones to form a very precise acoustic image.
Its bandwidth extends to ultrasonic frequencies, allowing it to locate sound sources precisely, even in a noisy industrial environment. The acoustic image is superimposed in real-time onto a digital camera picture as a heat map to provide a real time sound visualisation of the leak sources. The heatmap shows each sound source with a single colour governed by the estimated leak flow.
Atlas Copco then provides the customer with easily understood, actionable information including each leak’s exact sources and size in litres/minute.
“I have been carrying out compressed air leak detection audits for over 17 years and I have never come across a site which didn’t have any savings to be realised,” says Neil Frater, AirScan energy analyst at Atlas Copco.
Training opportunity
Meanwhile, the British Compressed Air Society is currently offering a 25% discount on course fees for customers of members for its newly launched, blended learning workshop for ISO 8573 air quality standard training.
While compressed air is inherently safe and reliable, it’s not clean and contains many hazards in the form of contamination, which need to be treated correctly.
A full understanding of ISO 8573, the international standard for air purity is therefore vital before any decisions on equipment selection and testing methods are undertaken.
With compressed air containing up to 10 different contaminants, the course is designed to help demystify not only the selection of the correct air treatment equipment but to provide practical advice on the impact that these contaminants can have on the processes that the compressed air is being used for.
