Compressor control kits cut energy waste

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Oct 10, 2005

EnergAir Solutions has launched two packaged air compressor control kits for reducing the energy consumption of industrial air compressor installations employing up to four air compressors.

EnergAir Solutions has launched two packaged air compressor control kits for reducing the energy consumption of industrial air compressor installations employing up to four air compressors.

The Enercon S2 and Enercon S4 kits contain all that is needed to replace pressure switches and traditional changeover panels with an intelligent compressor management system.

Aimed at compressed air distributors, contract services companies, and end users with in-house engineering and maintenance teams, a fully installed and commissioned EnergAir system can reduce energy consumption by up to 10%.

Energy savings are derived from applying a combination of system pressure optimisation principles, matching air generation closely to demand, ensuring compressors are working at their optimum efficiency and only when they are needed.

The central element of control included in both kits is an Enercon S control unit, a specialised supervisory and control module designed to provide optimised pressure and sequence management of two (model S2) or up to four (model S4) air compressors.

The general operating mode can be modified by a number of adjustable parameters and priorities to enable operation to be matched to individual site requirements and characteristics.

The flexibility of the Enercon S series controller, combined with a choice of interface options, means that most types of compressor can be controlled, including rotary screw, vane and reciprocating types in load/unload, multistep and variable speed configurations.

The kits also include compressor interface PCB module selected for each compressor in an installation, a 16.0bar pressure sensor.

Options include an installation pack containing cable glands, wiring, a wall mounting kit, DIN rail and wiring terminals.

Comprehensive installation instructions are also included.

Using microprocessor control, high accuracy electronic pressure sensing and a single pressure band control philosophy enables the Enercon system to offer a range of intelligent options to optimise system characteristics and reduce energy costs.

The high cost of energy combined with the relative inefficiency of basic pressure switch control means that many multiple compressor installations can comfortably achieve a 10% reduction in energy savings - often amounting to thousands of pounds on the bottom line after a payback period of a few months.

The claims for overall savings look high on first impressions, but, Just one of the basic principles of pressure optimisation applied by the Enercon system can have a dramatic effect on overall system efficiency.

For example: a 0.5bar reduction in the operating pressure of a system will typically produce a 5.25% reduction in the overall cost of electricity consumed by the system.

The controllers also offer a prefill function that can be used to prime the system with a preselected compressor, providing initial system pressure and stopping all available compressors switching on to pressurise the system on start-up.

The feature ensures smooth starts and saves energy in the process.

For users that require detailed reporting and live PC based monitoring and control for an Enercon management system, an EnerSoft PC visualisation package is also available.

EnerSoft is a PC based software package for visualisation and analysis of the EnergAir compressor management system.

Providing a tailor made and ready to use solution for control, monitoring, trending, efficiency management and reporting of key performance indicators.

EnerSoft is available in all language fonts that the resident PC's operating system supports.

Expansion options for the basic kit include system expansion modules (or I/O) to interface additional compressed air equipment, including compressed air filters, dryers, water pumps and cooling fans.

I/O expansion modules can also be used to gather and monitor information from sensors including pressure, temperature, bearing condition, flow, filter differential and dew point sensors.