Air-Liquid Centrifugal Separators

Dirt, water and oils within compressed air systems are a source of corrosion and contamination. Air contains water vapor which condenses into liquid droplets due to temperature and pressure changes in your compressed air system.  Trace amounts of oil, pipe scale and other particulates from the local environment, air compressor, receiver tanks and distribution plumbing contribute to coating the pipeline and equipment in the system and it all coalesces to low points in your plumbing.  This coalesced liquid can be removed with float drain traps without any lose of compressed air, however centrifugal separators are required for removing the entrained droplets and slugs of water that accumulate in low areas of piping where there are no drain traps installed.

Separators serve an important function within the compressed air system. Separators may also be known as knockout pots, knockout drums or demisters. Their function is to remove liquid that may be moving at a high speed from the flowing air, and they normally perform this function in a two-step process.

Centrifugal separators remove  entrained droplets of water and oil greater than 10 microns in size with 99% efficiency.  They have no internal filters or components to clean or maintain and are simply a fully welded pressure vessel with stainless steel internal baffle used to create a powerful air vortex (centrifugal force) and torturous path which droplets larger than 10 microns simply cannot navigate.

The internal baffle is oriented at a right angle to the inlet nozzle and thus the vessel must be sized to minimize pressure drop as well as maximization of centrifugal force.  The design of the stainless steel element requires sufficient surface area to coalesce the liquid load and enable drainage.

Aftercooler
Compressed air systems larger than 10HP often include an aftercooler, which is a section of water cooled piping used to reduce the specific volume of air to increase the efficiency of the compressor.  An aftercooler also condenses up to 2/3 of the liquid within the air, thus a separator installed after the aftercooler stage removes both condensate and oil carry-over from the compressor.

Intercooler
Similar to an Aftercooler except installed prior to the compressor or between compression stages to improve air compressor efficiency and protect the compressor. The removal of heat from the air results in the condensation of the water vapor suspended within the air.  Removing the condensate from the system protects instrumentation and equipment downstream.

The most common style of air liquid separator is in the shape of a "T", having an inlet and outlet 180° apart and in-line with each other.  The T style has a liquid removal capacity up to 40% of its maximum flow capacity.  When the expected liquid load is heavier or upset conditions may send "slugs" of water through your system, we can modify the baffle design and length of the vessel body accordingly.  We can also accommodate non-horizontal flow paths, whether that means vertical or some combination of horizontal and vertical nozzle orientation.

The standard material of construction for compressed air systems is carbon steel or 304L SS, although we can fabricate in 316L SS and a variety of other alloys as needed.  Compressor systems having 3/4" to 4" pipelines may be compatible with our cast iron type T separators, significantly less expensive and more readily available tan our custom fabricated separators.