What Is An Air Compressor Cooler?
Compressor cooler
Air compressor coolers (compressor intercoolers, air compressor After cooler, & oil coolers) are mechanical heat Exchangers used to remove air-flow heat and moisture to produce cool, dry air suitable for use in air-powered equipment. Basically, a compressor air cooler serves the following purposes:
- The cool compressor discharges air or inter-stage temperature in a
- Air compressors after cooling reduce the moisture content of compressed air systems.
- Compressed air
- The air compressor oil cooler keeps the compressor oil cool.
- The cooler
- Inter cooler
- The cooler for the air compressor reduces the load on downstream equipment like the air dryer.
Why are compressed air coolers required?
Compressed air discharged from a stage (multistage compressor) or from the final stage (air compressor outlet temperature) by an air compressor has high temperature. Depending on the type of compressor, the temperature will vary. Average compressor outlet temperatures are as follows:
- Oil-Injected Rotary Screw 180
- Oil-Free Rotary Screw 300
- 2-Stage Reciprocating 250
- Turbo Air Centrifugal compressor 180
Air that is too hot is usually not appropriate for use in air-operated equipment because it degrades lubrication and seal materials. Moisture vapor contained in hot air can also cause rust, scale build-up, the loss of lubricant, and freezing issues when it condenses.
Atmospheric air contains water vapor, which becomes more concentrated when the air is drawn into a compressor and pressurized. Since the air after compression is extremely hot, the moisture remains in a vapor state, above the dew point temperature.
Dew point is the temperature at which air becomes saturated when it is capable of holding 100 percent of its capacity to hold water vapor. In general, the air can hold twice as much moisture in a vapor state as it can below the dew point for every 20°F rise in temperature.
With a compressor inter cooler and after cooler, the dew point drops and water vapor condenses. The water vapor in the air will become droplets if the amount of moisture in the air exceeds the dew point. Without an air compressor cooling system, a 200 CFM air compressor operating at 100 PSI may result in up to 45 gallons of water every day in the compressed air cooling system.
Compressor Intercooler
Types of air compressor coolers:
Generally, an air compressor cooler can be classified as air-cooled or water-cooled.
Air Cooled compressed air coolers
The hot compressed air is cooled by ambient inlet air in air-cooled compressed air coolers. A motor-driven fan forces ambient air over the cooler as compressed air travels through an air-cooled cooler. It is designed with a spiral-finned tube coil or with a plate-finned coil design.
Compressed air is cooled by ambient air. An air-cooled After cooler is usually sized to bring compressed air to within 15 °F to 20 °F of ambient cooling air temperature, also called approach temperature.
When compressed air cools, up to 75% of the water vapor condenses into a liquid, which needs to be drained.The liquid moisture and solids in compressed air are removed mechanically from the air using a moisture separator installed at the discharge of the After cooler. Moisture and solids are collected at the bottom of the moisture separator using centrifuges and baffle plates, in some cases. Moisture should then be removed through an automatic drain.
Water-Cooled Air Compressor Cooler
Cooler Bundle
Unlike air-cooled after coolers, water-cooled air compressor coolers are installed in stationary compressor installations where there is access to cooling water. As a cooling medium, water has several advantages:
- There are no seasonal temperature fluctuations, which is common for inlet air
- It is cost-effective and readily available.
- It can approach ambient air temperatures efficiently, eliminating
- Condensation downstream and cooling compressed air effectively for places with the requirement of industrial compressed air.
Temperatures in water-cooled after coolers range between 10 °F and 15 °F, which is beneficial when cooler air is needed. There are several types of water-cooled after-coolers available.
A Shell and Tube After cooler is the most common. There are tubes fitted inside this shell that make up the After cooler. As compressed air passes through the tubes, water passes through the shell in the opposite direction or vice versa. Heat transfers from the compressed air to the water during this process.
water cooled cooler working
Water is formed within the tubes as the compressed air cools. Like an air-cooled cooler, a moisture separator and drain valve are used to remove the moisture.
The compressor air coolers in centrifugal compressors have a massive influence on their efficiency and thus also on their operating costs. They not only affect air compressor cooling but affect air compressor maintenance. To run an industrial air compressor economically over the long term, the compressors’ users must deploy high-quality and technically advanced air cooling systems.
ATLAS COPCO®, INGERSOLL RAND® AIR COOLER
Our advanced manufacturing technology and the use of a balanced quantity of tubes, in which the compressed air is cooled, enable our high quality air coolers, air compressor intercoolers, air compressor after coolers, following the OEM “donut-type” design, to offer a perfect balance between pressure loss and CTD values.
Centac Coolers
This means that we can not only give our customers a 100% guarantee that our air coolers can be used in their Centac ® compressor without restrictions but also assure them that they have the same or better performance values than the OEM products (Centac cooler) and therefore, efficiency influences the compressor positively in the long term.
Turbo-Air® & MSG® CENTRIFUGAL COMPRESSOR COOLERS
The intercoolers in Cameron turbo air compressors have a significant influence on their efficiency and thus also on their operating costs. To run a compressor economically over the long term, the compressors’ users must deploy high-quality and technically advanced intercoolers.
Turbo Airtech has precisely fulfilled this customer requirement by providing the best quality Turbo Air compressor coolers currently available in the market for replacement parts.
Turbo Air Compressor Coolers
Our Turbo-Air® Inter coolers offer a perfect balance between pressure loss and performance values.
By that, we can guarantee 100% interchangeability for Cameron Turbo air 3000, Cameron MSG Compressor, other Turbo air coolers and assure our customers that our Inter coolers perform at least as well as the OEM products.
The fact that we manufacture according to the highest standards and a standard warranty of eighteen months on all our Turbo-Air® air coolers witnesses our focus on a product meeting the highest quality standards.
FAQ
What is the air compressor cooling water requirement?
Cooling water requirements vary depending upon many factors; contact us to determine the precise cooling water requirement for your specific compressor model.
