Optimizing Compressed Air Systems

Please follow this links:

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/industry/bestpractices/pdfs/compressed_air_sourcebook.pdf

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/industry/bestpractices/tip_sheets_compressed_air.html

Atlas Copco lists several models with a ZT 55 prefix number. All produce over 250 cfm @ 100psi. Why would any one buy a compressor of that size to produce 1 cfm? Unless there is more info that you have not provided.

Agreed, Ozzb. A rotary screw compressor is only efficient when it is sized to operate at nearly 100% duty cycle, otherwise it is just consuming energy to spin the rotors when it is in the "unloaded" or "modulating" mode.

There has to be more information available that can lead to better advice here. If the molding press is the only consumer of compressed air, then a much smaller compressor could be used. And, beware even tiny leaks of compressed air, as even tiny ones cause a tremendous increase in the cost of operating an air compressor.

Best Regards,

Ing. Robert Forbus

Hi, dynames07!

Imagine the kind of folks who won't help a training engineer gather the data needed to complete a report on their own company. There is just no excuse for that kind of behaviour.

At the end of the report, include a paragraph or two about the reception you received when you tried to ask questions. Recount specific incidences. Name names. This isn't your company, and the report you will be offering them is the best you can do under the circumstances and with the help you got here in CR4.

Conclude with a paragraph about how you found certain staff to be extremely non-communicative and unhelpful in your efforts to collect information.

If it is your company, or you hope to get a job there later, submit a copy of your report to the head of human resources as well as to your school and the head of the department that assigned you the job. Be factual and unemotional, almost diary-like in this part of the report. This data will be useful, and should be presented without emotion.

Deliberately uncooperative people such as you met in your work term must be corrected or stopped from this kind of interaction for the good of the company, because it eventually reflects on the kind of work they produce for their employers. As an example, their un-cooperativeness has prevented the company from easily receiving a complete report on their air compressor array (your report); and thus those employees have prevented the company from optimizing this part of its operation. If not correctable, they will (hopefully) be terminated.

In other words, you have discovered an additional dysfunctional system in the company that requires a report to enable correction.

Mark

"Optimize" is a catch all.

Do they want to optimize how many CFM that can be delivered at all points? Do they want to minimize the pressure drop in the system? Do they want the system to run for the least amount of money (compressed air is a very expensive as a power source)?

First you have to define what the optimum target is.

Also, before you write your report, brush up on punctuation and the use of spaces and capitalization.

...compressed air system.the reception i received there...

should read

...compressed air system. The reception I received there...

Travis

Not enough information.

4)compressed air usage (compressed air is blown in jet form to overcome static charges between a plastic mold and hardened resin in manufacturing of lenses)

5)ideal cfm delivery-evaluated from the regular rules of thumb (1cfm delivered at 100psi)

Items 4&5 can only be determined by trial and error. Air needs to be adjusted to the point where static charge is neutralized.

Obviously the company is seeing high operating costs with their compressed airsystem and are trying to reduce that cost, but without their full cooperation, it can't be done. Study the compressed air link that was presented in a previous post so you will be completely knowledgeble when you talk with the company people.

Hi:

I used to work as a process engineer for SOLA ( currently Carl Zeiss ) in Tijuana so I kind of understand you manufacturing process, Is the compress air blown into the molds to separate them and take the resin lens out of them ???.

One of the projects that I work there was also air optimization, the two major improvements were:

a) Adjustment of the air nozzles to deliver only the quantity needed, enough to open the mold.

b) Add optical position sensors and selenoids to open/close the nozzles as needed.

c) Run the "Saturday Morning Drill" were you check all connections during shut down periods so you could hear all of the leaks in the tubing connections.

We saved almost 30% of air consumption, which meant lots of $$$$$ in electricity, maintenance, labor and overall cost of operation.

Hope this helps

regards

GD