Energy savings measures in compressed air systems

Compressed air is one of the most widely used application energies in the industry, such as good transportability, safety, purity, cleanliness, storage capacity and ease of use. In many countries, compressed air systems account for approximately 10% of the industry’s total electricity consumption. D...

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Autores:
Hernández Herrera, Hernan
Silva Ortega, Jorge I
Martínez Diaz, Vicente Leonel
García Sanchez, Zaid
González García, Gilberto
Escorcia, Sandra M.
Zarate, Habid E.
Tipo de recurso:
Article of journal
Fecha de publicación:
2020
Institución:
Corporación Universidad de la Costa
Repositorio:
REDICUC - Repositorio CUC
Idioma:
eng
OAI Identifier:
oai:repositorio.cuc.edu.co:11323/6206
Acceso en línea:
https://hdl.handle.net/11323/6206
https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.9059
https://repositorio.cuc.edu.co/
Palabra clave:
Compressed air systems
Electricity consumption
Energy efficiency
Energy savings
Rights
openAccess
License
CC0 1.0 Universal
Description
Summary:Compressed air is one of the most widely used application energies in the industry, such as good transportability, safety, purity, cleanliness, storage capacity and ease of use. In many countries, compressed air systems account for approximately 10% of the industry’s total electricity consumption. Despite all its advantages, compressed air is expensive, only between 10% and 30% of the energy consumed reaches the point of final use. Energy is lost as heat, leaks, pressure drop, misuse, among others. Energy efficiency measures such as: reducing compressor pressure, lowering air inlet temperature, adequate storage capacity, recovering residual heat from the air compressor and reducing leakage, can produce energy savings between 20% and 60%, with an average return on investment lower than 2 years. This paper analyzes the main energy efficiency measures that can be applied in the CASs, the potential energy savings, implementation costs and return rate of each of them are being calculated giving a necessary tool for companies in their objectives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption.