Compressed Air Best Practices - November 2008 - (Page 38) | 11–12/08 Focus Industry STEEL & METALS | BLOWERS REPLACE COMPRESSED AIR CREATING ENERGY SAVINGS FOR ALUMINUM MILL Solution The plant engineer contacted JetAir Technologies about the possibility of using a high-speed centrifugal blower to replace the compressed air nozzles at the aluminum casting mills. JetAir applications engineers visited the plant and determined that the metal chips could be removed with the use of a high-speed blower. “A lot of people think that you need the high pressure of compressed air for blow-off applications,” says Dan Snyder, VP of Engineering at JetAir Technologies. “However, pressures around 80–90 psi are in fact overkill and far too costly to produce.” Nearly every industrial application using high-pressure compressed air that bleeds into the atmosphere can be accomplished far more efficiently and effectively by the proper combination of high flow rates and moderate pressure. The JET-3 blower uses direct-drive construction and VFD technology to operate at speeds up to 20,000 rpm, creating flow rates upwards of 1,000 cfm at pressures of 1.5 to 4 psi. Rodney Campbell, owner of Velocity Industrial LLC (Rockwall, TX), reports, “I have replaced many compressed air applications in plants across the southwest and the people there are generally amazed at how effective these high-speed blowers are. The increased performance and significant energy savings create an ideal combination that can’t be denied.” JetAir engineers designed a custom solution for the aluminum plant based around the JET-3 highspeed blower. To replace the Lechler nozzles, JetAir designed a custom JetBlast nozzle manifold. The JetBlast was constructed out of rugged 304 stainless steel and featured twenty ½" ID nozzles at 2.5" spacing. JetAir engineers and test technicians determined that each nozzle needed to produce 30 cfm at 2 psi to easily remove the chips from the surface of the aluminum sheet. To do this a 15-hp model of the JET-3 was chosen to provide the air for the JetBlast. 38 38 ww w.airbes www airb e p www.airbe stp ractices.com be best http://www.airbestpractices.com
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