Energy Efficiency in Compressed Air

Solutions At A Glance

` 60,000

` 50,000

` 40,000

` 30,000

` 20,000

` 10,000 6,80,000

13,61,000

27,22,000

54,43,000

` 01 2 3 4

Higher returns w

ith bigger insta

llations

CompressedAir

Compression

AtmosphericAir

COMPRESS YOUR AIR COSTS

Compressed air finds widespread and varied usage in the

manufacturing industry and is considered the fourth

utility. Due to its nature, compressed air is considered to

be a free utility. On the contrary, according to a US

Department of Energy study, generating compressed air

consumes an average of 10% of electricity in any plant.

For industries like automobiles and cement, it may be as

high as 30%. Inefficient generation and leakages further

add to the generation cost.

Important Facts

• You may be spending upto Rs 31 lakhs per annum on

operating your 90KW compressor

• 30% of your electricity cost may be through

compressed air

• Cost of off-load running a 90KW compressor for

4 hours daily is Rs 1.3 lakhs per annum

• Leakages contribute to upto 40% of your

compressed air costs, costing upto Rs 15 lakhs

per annum.

• A single1/8” leak at 6.5 bar drains out Rs 1.5 lakhs

per annum.

• Over pressurization by even 0.5 bar costs you

Rs 1lakh per annum

• Compressed Air is costlier than Steam

Typical compressed Air Consumption

Leak 25%

Production 65%

Artificial Demand 15%

What are your losses?

Sources of losses in a compressed air network can be of a

varied nature. They can range from the obvious to the

hidden, from the large to the very small. Putting together

all these can harm your system in significant ways

1) Leakages

2) Inefficient generation

3) Inefficient distribution

4) Malpractices

5) Insufficient storage

Factors affecting the efficiency of compressed

air systems

• Inefficient compressors

• Over pressurisation

• Unbalanced compressed air requirement

• Insufficient storage

• Compressed air malpractices

• Piping issues and angle connections

• Moisture traps, filters etc malfunctions

How can you save?

Achieving energy efficiency and cost savings on

compressed air networks takes patience, expert

guidance and meticulous planning. Compressed air as a

utility, is often disregarded, and becomes a large source

of losses. To address this issue one has to look beyond the

just the obvious sources – leakages and compressor

inefficiency – and closely look at other avenues:

1. Reduce over-pressurisation

2. Balance your air requirement

3. Eliminate improper usage

4. Add to insufficient storage

5. Correct piping issues

Present Savings

hidden Savingsby Proper Monitoring, Metering and Controlling ofCompressed Air

The steps taken towards energy savings by most companies, while being effective, only scratch the surface of the overall savings potential. In order to achieve greater efficiency and to tap hidden potential, one must delve deeper and go in for more thorough measures. Forbes Marshall’s Air Efficiency Solutions help in identifying the necessary measures to achieve industry best practices.

You cannot save, unless you measure

Solutions at a glance

Air Audits - The air audit helps you identify various losses in compressed air networks and recommends solutions which help in reducing the compressed air costs.

MAC - Master Air Control (MAC) is a demand side load controller which helps reduce energy costs by eliminating artificial demand and ensures a steady delivery.

SequenceAIR - SequenceAIR is an intelligent compressor sequencing controller which delivers an efficient and economical compressed air system.

CountAIR - CountAIR is a comprehensive monitoring solution for compressed air networks. It keeps track of compressed air from generation to consumption and aids in running the compressed air network in balance.

FAD Meter - The FAD meter with online pressure and temperature compensation is an ideal and highly accurate solution for monitoring compressor efficiency.

AirMon - AirMon is an innovative cost-effective flowmeter for monitoring of compressed air on plant lines.

Analyse

Overview study

Audit & data collection

Helping Implement

Recommend

Compressed Air Audits

We offer a comprehensive bundle of services that help

optimisation of compressed air networks. Our offerings

go beyond just leak detection, the Forbes Marshall air

audit will help you identify and define your system

problems, whether they are in demand, distribution or

supply and recommend solutions, allowing you to meet

your return on investment goal.

Objectives of the Air Audit

• Reduce operating cost

• Improve productivity

• Improve quality

• Minimise or eliminate future capital costs

Scope of the Air Audit

• Compressor performance testing

• Analysis of compressed air demand and supply

• Air leak detection

• Piping and pressure drop measurement.

• Audits of pressure drops, malpractices and

mal-functioning of the equipment.

Beyond Audits

Forbes Marshall does not just conduct an audit and

submit the report; we support and work with our

customers till they have realised the saving potential

identified through the air audit.

Depending on the need we provide solutions for areas

such as:

• Demand and supply side load balancing

• Compressor sequencing

• Anti-surge control

• Compressor network monitoring

PSI100

80

Before MAC

After MAC

Master Air Control (MAC)

The Master Air Control (MAC) is an energy saving control

system, which actively helps you control the balance

across the demand and supply sides. The Master Air

Control helps reduce energy spent on compressed air by

eliminating artificial demand from the compressed air

network.

As usage fluctuates in the plant, it creates peaks and

troughs in the compressed air demand. Peaks in demand

are handled by MAC, rather than being directed towards

the compressors. This allows compressors to run longer

on a no-load condition, and as a result, compressor load

cycles are reduced. This decrease in compressor load

cycles is directly proportional to the decrease in energy

consumed by the compressors.

Features

• Highly responsive to fine changes in demand

• Accurate pressure control

• Fail safe operation

• History and trending feature

• 7” touch screen HMI

Benefits

• Separates compressors from demand side peaks

and lows, thus prevents compressor cycling to

minimal

• Consistent air pressure delivery to demand side

• Enhanced useful air storage capacity

• Accommodates any make of compressor

• Demand reduction tends to reduce leakages in plant

Total estimated savings

(All prices in table- in Rs. Lakhs))

Total system KW

%saving 75 150 300 600

18% 6.80 13.61 27.22

Tighter pressure band 5% 1.89 3.78 7.56 15.12

Reduced unregulated demand/leaks 3% 1.13 2.27 4.54 9.07

More efficient sequencing 10% 3.78 7.56 15.12 30.24

54.43

Investment

InstallationMaintenance

Energy consumption

System without SequenceAIR System with SequenceAIR

Investment

InstallationMaintenance

Savings

Energy consumption

SequenceAIR

The SequenceAIR offers intelligent

compressor control, to efficiently

and economica l ly manage

compressed air systems. It pro-

a c t i v e l y a n d d y n a m i c a l l y

determines the compressors to

use for the required system load

and keeps the system operating in

a narrow band. It can also be set

up to automatically change the compressor sequence

basis, a settable order, day and time

Features

• Touch screen HMI display

• Target pressure setting

• Pressure sensor calibration

• History and trending display

• Full range diagnostics

• Web based control features

• System response tuning

Benefits

• SequenceAir connects to any type of compressor, it is

expandable upto 12 compressors

• Match compressed air supply to compressed air

demand dynamically

• Preventive maintenance scheduling, thereby

avoidance of costly breakdowns

• Minimise final system pressure fluctuation,

improving plant production

Some Facts

The following graph shows the annual power loss

against leakages and over-pressurisation for different

compressor power consumption:

0.2

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9

70 KW

90 KW

100 KW

120 KW

150 KW

CountAIR

CountAir provides information on

• Real-time specific compressor and machine data

• Deviations of any machine or area from its trend line and rated consumption

• An overall plant demand overview

• All necessary information to save and control

• Unaccounted losses in the system

• Presence of leakages in distribution lines

What does the CountAIR offer?

• Historical trends of each area/unit with graphs

• Benchmarks for the system

• Alarms when demand spikes in any area

• Real time, user selectable alarms

• Intelligent or user-defined benchmarks for generation and consumption

• Real-time compressor efficiency monitoring

• Linking with existing DCS or SCADA

FAD meter

FAD meter input to Count Air

To PC/Laptop ( through LAN)(For Viewing)

Input to CountAir from Aimons

AIR COMPRESSOR

AIR COMPRESSOR

AIR COMPRESSOR

User areas Aimons

To User Department Dry Air Receiver

1

2

n

Count Air

PO

AirMon

Cost effective flow metering for compressed air

AirMon is an innovative cost-effective solution for

monitoring of compressed air on plant distribution lines.

With online pressure and temperature compensation, it is

the only practical solution for measuring compressed air

consumption. It is not only cost effective, but also highly

accurate and easy to install.

Benefits

• Specialised solution for utility metering of

compressed air

• High accuracy

• Cost effective solution

• Maintenance-free sensor design

• AirMon is a 2-wire transmitter specifically designed to

measure compressed air on distribution lines

FAD Meter

The only way to know how much air your process is

actually getting is with effective air flow metering. With

our FAD meter, downstream of your compressor, you will

know at every moment exactly how much air is reaching

your process. Plus, its proprietary software automatically

compensates for your plant's relative humidity (RH) levels

and rated shaft RPM, ensuring 100% reading accuracy.

Benefits

• 2-wire device with integrated pressure (optional) and

temperature compensation

• Wear-resistant as it is a fully welded stainless steel

vortex shedding

Structure

• High corrosion, pressure and temperature resistance

• Optimum process reliability.

• Maintenance-free sensor design

• It has an accuracy of +/- 1% of measured value

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Forbes Marshall Pvt. Ltd.A-34/35, MIDC, Industrial Estate, ‘H’ Block, Pimpri, Pune - 411 018. India.Tel.: 91(0)20 - 27442020Fax: 91(0)20 - 27442040 E-mail: airaudits@forbesmarshall.com

Domestic:Ahmedabad, Alibag, Bangalore, Bhopal / Indore, Chandigarh, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jamshedpur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Nagpur, Navi Mumbai, Surat, Trichy, Vadodara, Visakhapatanam

International Operations: exp@forbesmarshall.comBangladesh, Bolivia, Canada, Chile, Columbia, Egypt, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Nepal, Peru, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, U.A.E., USA, Venezuela

Compress Your Air Costs With Us

The avenues for energy savings are not limited to the

those mentioned above. The potential areas for energy

efficiency and energy savings are endless and deserve a

thorough exploration. With our expertise in Control &

Instrumentation and domain knowledge of Compressed

Air, we can help you realise maximum optimisation of

your compressed air network.

Why Meter Compressed Air?

Monitoring your network from generation to consumption is the first step to achieving energy savings and an optimal compressed air network. Most utility managers are now looking at various ways to control rising energy costs. However, due to lack of information, most compressed air networks tend to be mismatched – the generation often outstrips the demand, and most utility managers provide air to processes based on an approximate or intuitive guess about the requirements.

Benefits of metering compressed air

• Know your losses vs leakages

• Avoid periodical overhauls

• Reduce downtime through preventive maintenance

• Avoid over pressurisation.

• Annual power loss vs over pressure%