Air Compressor Parts

Air compressors are mechanical devices with lot of moving parts. Needless to say, the moving action will cause wear and tear on such parts. No mater what type of air compressor you are using it will eventually need replacement of air compressor parts. If neglected, this wear and tear can have serious effects on your air compressor. It will not only lower down the performance of your air compressor, but at times, might also prove to be dangerous. Hence it is important to know the components that make up your air compressor so that when you are looking to change some parts, you at least have an idea what you should be looking for. As like any other device, the specifications may change for different models and different manufacturers, however, the basic parts and their functions would remain the same.

The two broad categories of air compressors are those that are oil lubricated and those that are not. The oil-lubricated compressor needs more care with its operations, more maintenance, and the oil needs to be changed periodically to keep it in good running condition. Compressors which are not lubricated by oil are comparatively simpler machines and easy to use.

Most air compressors that are used by industries make use of multi stage compression (where air is compressed more than once). This meets the heavy-duty requirements of industries, as the air is compressed at a much higher degree compared to the small, portable compressors commonly used in homes. Also, these have the option of storing the unused air for future use, which results in savings in terms of energy consumption. These industrial air compressors run on higher horsepower than the conventional compressors, are much less likely to break down, and require minimal maintenance.

Air compressors are complex mechanical devices, and there are many parts that go into their working. External parts such as the gas tank, the frame, compression module, wheels, handle bars, and electrical cables are all relatively simpler and can be easily maintained and replaced in case of damage. The internal parts are much more complex and are much more likely to wear out due to constant use. They lie inside the compressor module and are the mechanical parts that actually compress the air.

Rotary Screw: The mechanism of the rotary screw compressor utilizes counter-rotating intermeshed helical screw placed in a correspondingly shaped chamber. With the rotation of the mechanism, the meshing and rotation of the helical rotors compresses the gas inside a small space.

Rotary Vanes: The rotary vanes are the blades in a rotating cylinder, and are mounted off-axis. In the rotor, two diametrically opposed radially directed vanes are spring-loaded to force contact with the pump’s body. As the rotor is positioned off-axis, the motion will cause the volume of gas between the vanes and the body to vary during each half turn. The gas inlet port is positioned in such a way that once there is an intake of gas by the movement of the vane it allows the next portion of the gas in the feeding pipe to expand until the next vane passes.
Piston: A piston is a solid disk or cylinder that fits into a larger cylinder and is moved by or moves against the pressure of air.

The other parts that supplement these main mechanical parts inside a compressor are springs, shocks, forks, rims and stand. All these are subjected to a lot of wear and tear, as these are the moving mechanical parts, which actually compress the air. Hence, periodic maintenance and replacement is necessary for these parts.

Air Compressor Hoses

Hoses are hollow cylindrical shaped tubes with circular cross section that are used to dispatch air or liquids. Air compressor hoses are rubber tubes, which carry compressed air through or to actuators, pneumatic components, tools and valves. The hose is flexible and so it can be coiled or corrugated so that the components can be positioned as per the requirement. The hoses can be stored easily and occupy less space. There are some air compressor hoses that are elastic in nature so that they can be expanded as per the requirement. They are seldom reinforced.

While purchasing air compressor hoses one must take into consideration the external diameter (especially for corrugated and pleated type of hoses) and internal diameter, least bend radius. Maximum rated vacuum is mostly measured in millimeters or inches of mercury, which is referred to under a single standard atmosphere. The air compressor hoses can be either measured in Metric units i.e. millimeters or centimeters or English units i.e. inches or fractions of an inch. You can also access some air compressor hoses defined with both the types of units. The required range of operating temperature can be given in English units i.e. Fahrenheit, or in Metric units i.e. Celsius.

Air compressor hoses are mostly used for exhausts, fresh air suctions, pneumatics and vacuums. Some air compressor hoses can be used only with applications specified by the manufacturer. Fresh breathable air is carried through fresh air compressor hoses. Air at less than atmospheric pressure is carried through suction or vacuum hoses. The main application for exhaust air compressor hoses is to remove unwanted gases and particles from a system.

There are some important specifications related to performance that have to be taken into consideration, such as:

Maximum vacuum: It is mostly measured in inches or millimeters, under a single standard atmosphere.

Temperature range: It is the total range required of operating temperature.

Working pressure: It is also known as maximum service design pressure.

There are various construction options available for air compressor hose, some of them include articulated, coiled, convoluted, corrugated, multi-element, reinforced, etc. Articulated air compressor hoses are used in applications where the discharge through the hose is aimed as per the requirement like in the case of coolant discharge to a specific work piece. These hoses are made of rigid hose sections, which are constructed with flexible joints that can be articulated, positioned or swiveled as per the requirement. Coiled air compressor hoses are so constructed, to be expanded and easily stored. There are various hoses that have been adhered together to form a bundled, ribbon or flat configuration in the case of a multi-element air compressor hose. Some element of reinforcement is included in the construction of reinforced air compressor hoses. There are various styles in which these hoses are available like; wire helix, wire braid, textile braid and in various other designs of layer configurations or ply.

Industrial Air Compressors

Industrial air compressors are heavy-duty mechanical devices that compress air and store it in a high-pressure holding tank, which is usually made of iron or steel. In some industries, the compressed air is released directly into a network of high-pressure pipes, thereby making it available for industrial use right away and eliminating the need for storage.

There are two main kinds of air compressors that are used for manufacturing and industrial purposes:

Reciprocating compressors and Rotary screw air compressors.

Reciprocating compressors – In this, the air is compressed by pistons, and then forced into the high-pressure tank.

Rotary screw air compressors – Twin screws are used in this instead of pistons. These are like two large drill bits, which are placed side by side, and force air into high pressures.

Compressed air is useful because when it is released, it gushes out at a tremendous speed, allowing industries to use the same for a variety of purposes. The construction industry in particular has become even more dependent on air compression technology in the last few years because of the increase in the number of high-rise buildings being constructed worldwide. As all such mega projects have a deadline, it is important to maintain the flow of construction material such as Reinforced Concrete (RC) to the place where they are needed. Air compression technology helps because it allows engineers to pump even something as heavy and dense as RC to the top floor of the high-rise. Industrial cranes can also be used for the same purpose, but air compression pumps are preferred because they make the task much more easier, faster, and certainly far less risky.

Compressed air is now being used in industries worldwide for powering a wide variety of tools and equipment such as jackhammers, jacklegs, needle scalers, tuggers/winches, air chisels, sandblasters, chipping hammers, and rock drills. Apart from these, the other tools that are powered by compressed air include nail guns, sanders, drills, staplers, and spray guns. An interesting thing about these tools is that most of them source the compressed air from an external air-compressing unit or from a pressurized cylinder containing compressed air. These tools do not generate compressed air on their own, because such a task requires quite a big compressing system, which when fitted onto these tools make them bulkier, nullifying their usefulness.

Compressed air produced by industrial air compressors can be used for many other purposes such as cleaning surfaces covered with dust, grease, oil and grime. While industrial grade solvents are available for cleaning tough stains, but compressed air is often preferred because it does not involve the use of messy liquids or large scrubbing machines. Air compressors are also used in the automobile industry, mostly for the automatic spray-painting of the manufactured cars, coupes, sedans, or SUVs. Air compressors are also a necessity at gas stations for pumping gasoline and diesel. An electric motor is not used for the purpose because the sparks generated by the motor can result in a huge explosion.

Industrial air compressors are now also being tested for developing a cheap and environment friendly means of powering automobiles. The technology is however still in its infancy, and as such it will be quite a while before it becomes available commercially. Thus, until such advanced and innovative technologies become reality, industries have no other option but to use the existing air compression technology, tools and equipment.