Compressed Air System: Tips to Optimize for Best Performance

Install your compressor equipment in a clean environment to allow smooth air flow through the system. Factors like ventilation plan, optimum air circulation, minimum free spacing between units, all add up to maximum uptime and longer life of compressors. Watch out for dust accumulation, ambient temperature increase, or humidity levels inside the room. 

Both – under sizing and oversizing can be a problem. When selecting a compressor consider the application in question, volume of air and minimum pressure needed. If undersized, the application won’t run due to air starvation and if oversized you could end up with lots of wasted power.

Selecting the right technology either piston, or screw or centrifugal air compressor based on the total flow  and operating pressure along with the demand pattern will determine the best technology to go for as it will bring long term benefits on the efficiency of each technology to operate at the required flow and pressure. 

Having enough storage receivers can help improve overall efficiency in a few ways.

The central receiver right after the compressor can better regulate load/ unload cycle of the compressors and significantly reduce unload power in the system which is wasted energy.

Receiver tanks placed along the production area or close to machines with high consumption can avoid sudden pressure drops and ensure smooth air supply. 

Monitoring and data collection techniques enable the maintenance team to keep a tab on the current working condition of the air compressor and look for any technical hiccups. Furthermore, technologies like SMARTLINK, are automated and underpinned on smart algorithms, the maintenance team can get alerts and stay up-to-date even when not in proximity to the compressor room. 

The elimination of manual input makes it easier for everyone to gain insightful data, automate the maintenance process, prepare for proactive maintenance schedules, and streamline the workflow in the industrial plant. Overall, monitoring your air compressor will lead to optimized performance, reduced energy bills, and prove to be cost-effective in the long run. 

Air dryers and filters are important air treatment equipment. While the dryer helps check moisture creation within the compressor, the filter helps remove particulates from the air, thereby preventing contamination of the system. 

Timely maintenance and regularly replacing filter elements is the key to prevent to unnecessary extra energy consumption created to overcome pressure drop or loss from moisture build-up in the pipeline.

Oil free screw air compressors placed as the best fit technology when it comes to air quality and lowest life cycle cost by elimination of down stream filtration that eliminate pressure drop that can reach to 1 bar in the filtration and large amount of oil to be changed in the traditional typical oil injected technology . 

It’s a fact that almost 70% of your compressor system’s life cycle cost eventually comes down to its energy usage in the long run. In this connection, updating or switching your air compressor can check energy consumption significantly.

Opting for a modern compressor with advanced motors and controllers is a more cost-effective option than incurring the running cost of your inefficient or old compressor. 

For example, you can install a Variable Speed Drive (VSD) compressor in place of a fixed compression system to ensure great savings. Preventing energy wastage, a VSD compressor helps save up to 35% energy, while a Premium VSD+ unit from Atlas Copco’s ZR /ZT series may save 50% energy even when at full load, compared to fixed speed compressors. 

A compressed air system comprises multiple dryer/compressor units with varying capacities and speed control motors. This setup has to be efficiently managed using an advanced central control system.

It’s worth mentioning that Optimizer 4.0 Central Controller is an ideal fit for smart industrial facilities making it easier to reduce excessive production of air. Not only can it gather data and analyse information on the cloud for improved efficiency, but the controllers can also automatically shut down the compressors during non-production times. 

Compressed air piping is a critical part of your equipment that transports compressed air to end-use applications. The system design certainly impacts the efficiency of your compressor air system, but the selection of piping material is also important. While aluminium air piping is sought after due to its lightweight and structural strength, stainless steel pipes are resistant to corrosion for oil-free compressors.

Recalculating the network of compressed air piping for better system design, reducing the pressure drop between the point of consumption and compressor can prove to be cost-effective and energy-saving in the long run.

Further, air velocity should be at an ideal level of 6m/s or less to avoid problems like erratic control signals, turbulence-induced pressure drop, and backpressure. 

According to studies, more or less 25% of total compressed air is lost due to system leakage. In extreme cases, the percentage can be as high as 80%. The cost of system leakage can also be massive.

Therefore, getting an air leak test conducted by an expert is always suggested to optimize the compressor’s operations while keeping the production cost under check.