Field Knowledge, Plant Operation

Compressors
Work under pressure

Hardly any chemical plant functions without

compressed gases: specific chemical processes
require gas with a high pressure, other fields need
liquefied gases (e.g. air) or compressed or instrument
air. Depending on the requirements, different com-
pressors are used. The major types are reciprocating
compressors, turbocompressors, and rotary screw
type compressors.

Reciprocating Compressors
Most of us have a recipro-
cating compressor in the
bicycle shed: the bicycle air
pump. Even with strong
efforts 1000 bar cannot be
generated with it. For this, a
motor or turbine is required
as a drive mechanism.
Reciprocating compressors
compress the gas in a pul-
sating wave. The pressure
surges subject the system
to shock loads, and the
pulsating gases (flowing
intermittently) cause vibra-
tions in the pipe line. If the
pistons are lubricated by oil,
the gas is contaminated
with oil.
Reciprocating compressors Design
are used, for example, for The major components of a
the compression of process reciprocating compressor
gases. are:

the piston with the piston
rod;

the cylinder;

suction and discharge
valves opening and clos-
ing automatically, and

the flywheel.

flywheel

cylinder

valves

piston

Reciprocating compressor (Ilustration: Courtesy Sulzer Burckhardt)

1
 Field Knowledge, Plant Operation

Operation
The piston moves in the cylinder through the dis- In addition, heat is gener-
cylinder forward and back- charge valve. ated in the course of the compression

ward. The forward move- The backward movement of compression process. In

ment reduces the compres-
sion space. The gas is com-
pressed until the pressure in
the cylinder has increased
to the counterpressure at
the discharge valve. The
piston then presses the
compressed gas from the
the piston expands the most of the processes this
compression space. The must be eliminated by way
discharge
gas is drawn in through the of heat exchangers.
suction valve.
When compressing from 1
to 5 bar the gas is com-
drawing in
pressed to 1/5 of the initial
volume.

Designs
In a single-action recipro-
cating compressor the suc-
tion and discharge valves
are both located on the
same side of the piston; the
stroke of the piston com-
presses only once. The
compression process pro-
duces a pulsating wave, the
pressure variations are very
large.
In a double-action compres-
sor, suction and discharge
valves are located on both
sides of the piston. Gas is
drawn in and compressed
with each stroke of the pis-
ton doubling the flow of the
compressed gas leaving the
compressor. With the
exception of the reversal
point of the piston, gas is
always transported.
Depending on whether the
gas is compressed in one or
several stages, there are
single stage and multiple-
stage compressors.
Frequently plants use multi-
ple-stage compressors
because they reach higher
pressure levels.
The pistons of reciprocating
compressors are mostly
lubricated by oil. If the gas
must not be contaminated
by oil, oil-free reciprocating
compressors are used.
Double-action compressor

Auxiliary Equipment
No compressing system
can function without auxil-
iary equipment. Pressure
balance vessels (air compressor
receivers) collect the com- motor drive
pressed gas and buffer the pressure balance vessel
gas line
pressure surges before the
gas cooler
gas enters the pipe line closed-loop water cooler
system or a subsequent
pressure stage. Heat
exchangers cool the gas
compressed in the individ-
ual stages and heated by
the compression. Separa-
tors separate entrained
moisture and oil from the
gas.
Safety valves preclude the
occurrence of hazardous
excess pressures: theoreti-
cally, if the discharge valve
does not open, the recipro-
cating compressor may
compress gas indefinitely. In
reality however, if the dis-
charge valve did not open
the compressor would
burst.

Compressor station with auxiliary equipment (Illustration: Courtesy Sulzer Burckhardt)

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 Field Knowledge, Plant Operation
Advice and Directions for Operation
Sealing of Piston and
Piston Rod
Generally, the piston sealing
rings and stuffing boxes
must be lubricated in order
to preclude excessive wear.

Are all proper lubricant
levels maintained accord-
ing to schedule?

Does the lubricant feed
operate satisfactorily?

Is the stuffing box pack-
ing seal-tight?

Has the correct oil type
been used when filling
the lubricant reservoir?
valve stop
springs
valve seat valve disk
Disk valve and components (Photo: Courtesy Sulzer Burckhardt)
Mechanical Loading of
the Material
The continuous acceleration
and retardation during the
forward and backward
movements of the piston
and the cycling pressure
conditions at the piston
subject the material to high
mechanical loading.

Is the bearing tempera-
ture still normal?

Are the background
noises normal?

Is the device running
smoothly (no „knock-
ing“)?
shock-absorbing plate
central pin
3
Heatup
When compressing gas,
heat is generated. Everyone
notices this when inflating a
bicycle tire. The hot gas
warms the material and the
lubricants. The temperature
may rise far beyond 100 °C.
This heat must be removed
by way of heat exchangers;
e.g. water or air coolers.

Are the gas temperatures
correct?

Is the coolant tempera-
ture correct?

Is the coolant quantity
adequate?
Valves Assemblies
The valves are heavy-duty
components and subject to
intense wear, for they open
and close up to 25 times
per second.

Is the noise in the valve
area normal (no hissing)?

Are the gas temperatures
in the individual stages
normal?

Are the gas pressures in
the individual stages nor-
mal?

Why do the stages in
multiple-stage compressors
become smaller and
smaller?

Where are compressed
gases used in our
company?

How are these gases
compressed?

Which type of reciprocat-
ing compressor is illustrated
on page 1?

In a bicycle air pump
what is the
- inlet valve?
- discharge valve?
- piston?
- drive?

Which pressure may be
produced by way of an air
pump?
 Field Knowledge, Plant Operation

Turbocompressors
Turbocompressors are also called rotary compressors.
They run at high velocity, transport and compress large
amounts of gas, but cannot generate as high a pressure as
reciprocating compressors.
Turbocompressors are driven by motors or turbines.

Operation
Turbocompressors are
designed with an impeller
having attached blades to
accelerate the gas flow. The
gas exits the blades section
at a high velocity. The gas is
slowed down in expanding
ducts. The released kinetic
energy is converted to com-
pressive energy.
Depending on the type of
impeller there are radial-flow
and axial-flow turbocom-
pressors.
In an axial-flow compressor
the gas flows through the
impeller in the direction of
the center of rotation, i.e.
axially.
In a radial-flow compressor
the gas is drawn in axially
and flows through the
impeller vertically to the
impeller axis, i.e. radially.
The gas is slung to the out-
side; this is why radial-flow
compressors generate
higher pressures than axial-
flow compressors.
For a large throughput with
a high final pressure, a
combination of compres-
sors is applied in which the
axial-flow section is follow-
ed by a radial-flow unit.
Most of the turbocompres-
sors are designed with sev-
eral impellers on one shaft.
Each impeller corresponds
to one compression stage
in which the gas is com-
pressed. The more impellers
installed, the higher is the
final pressure. This design is
called single-shaft compres-
sor.
Gear-driven turbocompres-
sors may have one or sev-
eral stages. In a multi-stage
gear-driven turbocompres-
sor the impellers are
installed on several shafts
interconnected by a gear
unit. As opposed to a sin-
gle-shaft compressor, here
the individual stages may be
controlled by quantity.

Combined turbocompressor (Illustration: Courtesy Man- Radial-flow turbocompressor (Illustration: Courtesy Man-
nesmann Demag) nesmann Demag)

gas outlet

gas

blades gas inlet

Flow direction in an axial-flow compressor Flow direction in a radial-flow compressor

High Throughput Application

As opposed to reciprocat-
ing compressors, the turbo-
compressor does not have
any components moving
forward and backward. This
allows high velocities and a
high gas throughput.
In addition, the turbocom-
pressor does not require
opening or closing valves
because the compression
process is steady: the com-
pressed gas can therefore
not flow back against the
flow direction.
Radial-flow turbocompres-
sors are used where
medium gas quantities
(10 000 m3/h) with high
pressure (2 bar absolute
pressure) are needed: for
process gas compression
or air liquefaction.
Axial-flow turbocompres-
sors supply up to 1,200,000
m3/hr. One example for
using this type of compres-
sor is in the production of
compressed air.

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 Field Knowledge, Plant Operation
Turbocompressors may start „surging“
If the delivery conditions in
a turbocompressor are not
correct, it starts ‘surging’.
The gas in the compressor
casing flows forward and
backward.
Surging occurs when insuf-
ficient gas is transported at
high pressure (prohibited
range).
Surging causes the com-
pressor shaft to vibrate and
results in the destruction of
the unit (bearing damage,
colliding of the impellers).
The escaping gas may put
the operating staff at risk.
During the surging process
the gas flow in the com-
pressor stages collapses
again and again. The com-
Advice and Operating Instructions
Sealing of the Shaft
The impellers are located on
a shaft rotating at a high
speed. In order to allow as
little gas to escape from the
compressing space as pos-
sible (excess pressure!) to
the outside via the shaft,
the shaft is sealed. For this
purpose, labyrinth packing
is used.

Is the shaft seal in order?

Is the quantity of leakage
gas normal?

Is the oil level normal?
Five-stage turbocompressor
pressor can no longer move
the gas between the dis-
charge and intake sides as
a result of the high pres-
sure. If the gas flow drops
below the minimum rate,
the flow is reversed: The
gas flows backwards in the
compressor stages to the
intake side. After an equal-
ization of the pressure the
compressor can deliver
again. Without any remedial
measures the process will
repeat: Collapse of the gas
flow, backflow, pressure
equalization, and resuming
of delivery.
The surge control prevents
surging in the compressor.
It adjusts the pressure and
the delivery in such a way
5
the
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pressure rgi co ing
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prohibited
range
10 000 rpm
9 000 rpm
tolerated
range 8 000 rpm
7 000 rpm
delivery
that the compressor never decreases and the delivery
operates in the surging increases. The compressor
range. Should this, how- operation leaves the haz-
ever, happen, the „bypass“ ardous range and continues
opens. This is a line from operation in the tolerated,
the discharge to the intake „green“ range.
side. The pressure
Mechanical Materials
Is the indication of the
Load axial thrust normal?
As a result of the high
speed the centrifugal force Thermal Evolution
subjects the impeller to a When compressing gases
high load. In addition, any heat is generated. The hot
unbalance may cause gas heats the compressor’s
strong vibrations. Extensive metal and lubricants. The
damage results. A shearing heat must be removed by
force acts on the impeller in way of heat exchangers.
the axial direction: the axial
Are the gas temperatures
thrust. This loads the thrust correct?
bearing.
Are the coolant tempera-

Is the unit running tures correct?
smoothly?
Is the coolant quantity

Do the vibration sensors adequate?
indicate changes, are the
limit values maintained?

Is the temperature of the
bearings normal?

Where in our company
Why are the impellers
are turbocompressors slightly smaller with every
used? stage in multi-stage turbo-
compressors?

What drives the turbo-
compressors in our com-
Which physical units are
pany? a measure for the axial
thrust or the shaft vibra-

Which pumps make use tions?
of the centrifugal force, as
do turbocompressors?
 Field Knowledge, Plant Operation

Rotary Screw Type Compressors

Rotary screw type compres-
sors are a variety of rotary
piston compressors; they
have two engaging spiral master rotor
rotors. They are called mas-
ter and secondary rotors.
Only the master rotor is secondary rotor
directly driven. The distance
between the two rotors and
between the rotors and the
casing is very small (gap
width approx. 0.2 mm).

On the intake side a tooth

gap of the secondary rotor
fills with gas. In the course
of the rotation a tooth of the
master rotor engages more
and more with the tooth
gap and compresses the
gas. On the discharge side
the compressed gas is
finally discharged.

A typical field of application

for rotary screw type com- drive
pressors are refrigerating
systems. There the coolant
is compressed.
Rotary screw type compressor (Illustration: Courtesy Aerzen)

Liquid Ring Com-

pressors
Liquid ring compressors master rotor secondary rotor
operate like the liquid ring
vacuum pumps described in
the series Field Knowledge,
Plant Operation under the
topic Vacuum Pumps.

Related Topics
In the series Field Know-
ledge, Plant Operation:

Delivery systems for
gases

Ventilators and fans

Vacuum pumps Master and secondary rotors of a rotary screw type compressor

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