Industrial Air Compressors for Pneumatic Tools
Industrial Air Compressors includes any machine that compresses a gas at a pressure that is greater than the atmosphere using mechanical means. We use industrial air compressors everyday in our garage to pump up our tires or at the job to operate an impact wrench. They should be distinguished, however, from the compressors we find in refrigerators, air conditioners and industrial cooling machines. These industrial gas compressors are different in that they compress a refrigerant gas or liquids by mechanical means. We are not as familiar with this kind of compressor even though both compressor types generate heat, an cooling expansive force and use similar compression technologies, i.e., reciprocating pistons. Both types also use gas or electricity as a source of power. They are different in terms of what they compress and how they use the expansive force of air or refrigerant. While industrial air compressors compress air to use its expansive force primarily as a source of motive force or power, industrial gas compressors compress gas or a refrigerant as a source of cooling.
Buy Air Compressors Today
Visit Tool King and Northern Tool + Equipment for air compressors and other pneumatic tools like sandblasters and sandblaster kits:
| Ingersoll Rand Garage Mate: 2 HP, 5.5 CFM | |
|---|---|
 |
Designed for professionals, the versatile Garage Mate from Ingersoll is ideal for the home, shop or construction site. Delivering maximum air, the Garage Mate can power impact guns, ratchets, grinders, drills, nailers, paint sprayers, sanders and more. |
Compressor Applications
The typical air compressor is ideal for situations where electrical power is either unavailable or it is too dangerous to run an electric tool. Electric and gas compressors, along with the right air tool, can also dramatically save the amount of time you will spend on some projects. When compared to electrical or gasoline powered tools, air tools are often lighter, faster, and more powerful. Small and portable compressors can move easily from the garage to the house, yard or roof. Some of the most popular air tools such as brad nailers, impact wrenches and sand guns require about 0–5 CFM or cubic feet per minute (units of air flow). Air compressors are also very popular in road and general building construction sites where an electrical motor would be too large to provide the desired torgue. For example, there are pneumatic jackhammers for road construction, and pneumatic impactwrenches used in car garages to tighten or loosen lug nuts that require speeds in the 10,000 to 30,000 rpm range. Pneumatic equipment has also become part of automated systems. While a crank or ratchet wrench can provide an oscillating or rotating motion, an air tool is much more suitable for those high-speed rotor applications. Turning the rotor while the air expands, using an air compressor is ideal for high-speed drills, grinders and for air sirens. Compressed air is also used for the pneumatic conveyance of materials, such as substances in granular, chip, pelletized, or powdered form. Compressed air can also be used to by robotic machines and paint spray systems. Compressed air is also used in automatic packaging machinery for sealing, locating the work, and activating arms that fold paper to wrap the work.
Compressors that compress a refrigerant are used in various applications where either higher pressures or lower volumes of gas are needed. Refrigeration is probably the most critical technology of our time given its role in the preservation of food. The use of these compressors in air conditioning is also quite revolutionary especially in hot and humid climates. Our dependency on these compressors has expanded to all sorts of industries. They are responsible for providing a breathable atmosphere in those situations where air is not readily available, i.e., in submarines, scuba diving equipment and airplanes. They are also responsible for cooling those industrial processes where great amounts of heat are generated. Compressors, for instance, are used to cool the hot plastic that is injected, blown, extruded or stamped, and the equipment that is used to create plastic products. They also remove the heat generated by the friction of the printing rollers and cools down the paper after it comes out of the ink drying ovens in the process. In the laser cutting industry, light projection industry, etc. a compressor can be used to cool down the lasers and power supplies.