Learning Objectives

Uses of compressed air

Installation requirements
Air compression theory
Multistage compression
Volumetric efficiency
Constructional details
Operation and Maintenance
Compressor lubrication
Explosion hazard
Air receivers
Uses of compressed air
25 – 30 bar
 Starting of main & auxiliary engines
 Boiler soot blowing
4 – 7 bar
 Service air
 Whistle air
 Pneumatic tools
 Life boat, pilot ladder
1.5 – 2 bar
 Instrumentation & control
Compressors
Minimum 2 or more compressors
Sufficient capacity to charge air receivers within 1 hour from atm.
to max. pressure to provide
 6 starts for non reversible engine
 12 starts for reversible engine
1 emergency air compressor & receiver for dead ship condition

Air Receivers
At least 2 air receivers with sufficient capacity without
replenishment and able to provide
 6 starts for non reversible engine
 12 starts for reversible engine
Pressure Relief devices
Relief v/v to be fitted after each stage of compression
Relief v/v to be fitted on the air receiver
Relief v/v or bursting disc to be fitted on inter & after coolers

Air Temperature
Limited to 93OC to prevent explosion
Fusible plug or high temp cut out provided as safety measure
Pressure Test
Cylinders, cylinder covers, inter & after coolers are tested by
hydraulic pressure to twice their working pressure.
Casing of intercooler and after cooler is hydraulically tested to
1.5 times the cooling water pressure
 Air compression
Theory

Nearly perfect gas, as air is composed of mainly 23%

oxygen and 76.5% nitrogen & rest other gases by
mass

Mixture of gases behave as near as perfect gases

Follows perfect gas laws – Boyle’s and Charles’ laws

During compression
 Volume reduces
 Pressure & temperature increases
 Mass remains constant

Air follows the combination of gas laws:

PV = mRT; PV / T = mR = Constant
 TYPES OF COMPRESSION
Isothermal compression (PV = C)
 no rise in temp during compression
 heat is removed during compression
 least power input & most efficient
 difficult to achieve in practice

Adiabatic/Isentropic compr. (PV1.4 = C)

 no heat removed & temp. rises
progressively during compression
 power input is max. & efficiency is low

Polytropic compression (PV1.3 = C)

 actual compression process in
practice
 heat is extracted during compression
 lies between isothermal and
isentropic compression
 work done to compress air is reduced
Ideal P-V Diagram
4-1 Air induction
1-2 Air compression
2-3 Air delivery
3-4 Expansion of
remaining air
Vc Clearance vol.
Vs Swept vol (V1 – Vc)
VI Induced vol (V1 – V4)
Vol eff. = Induced vol/Swept vol
Compr. ratio = V1/ V2 = P2 / P1
 Actual P-V Diagram
Similar to ideal except
induction & del. process
Which are modified by v/v
action
Waviness of the lines 4-1
and 2-3 is due to
v/v bounce
v/v inertia
spring action
variation in back
pressure
Volumetric Loss
Due to clearance Volume
Effect of increasing
Clearance Volume
As the pressure increases, more stages are required with intercooling
due to following disadvantages of single stage compression:
Low volumetric efficiency
 As pressure ratio P2 / P1 is increased, vol efficiency drops
High air delivery temperature
Increase in pressure ratio results in higher delivery temp. causing
 excess coke deposits
 thermal stress
 Lubrication problem
 Explosion hazard
Increased power input
 Inter-stage cooling lowers the work done in compressing air

Number of stages is governed by the required final pressure of the

compressed air.
Applied when delivery
press. is high
Compression is carried out
in stages
Ensures equal rise in temp
in each stages to prevent
v/vs & springs damage
Requires minimum work;
shaded area indicates the
wok saved
If stage pressures are P1,
P2 & P3, P4
P2 =  P1 . P3 & P3 =  P2 . P4
Advantages:
Compression work is reduced
Vol efficiency and hence compressor capacity is increased
It approximates isothermal compression
Vol of air delivered is reduced; as a result reduced size of
cylinder, piston and delivery pipes is required
Reduced air delivery temp gives less thermal &mechanical
loading and better lubrication of piston & cylinder
Due to less temp, suc & del valves remain clean
Facilitates moisture separation
Use of intercooler allows smaller receiver
 Volumetric Efficiency

It is the relationship between the Qty of air

discharged
and the swept volume.
vol of air discharged as free air
Vol efficiency =
swept vol of L.P. piston

Free air is air at atm. press and at 15 deg C

Vol.eff. always refer to low pressure piston
 Clearance Volume

To provide for thermal expansion and prevent the piston from

striking cylinder cover, a small clearance, called bumping
clearance is maintained between cylinder cover & piston

Bumping clearance must be as small as possible

High bumping clearance reduces vol effn. of compressor
Reduces compressor capacity & increases disch air temp.
Bumping clearance is effected by bearing wear & gasket thickness
Low bumping clearance can cause mechanical damage
Bumping clearance must be checked after overhauling
Clearance volume is about 6% of swept volume
Factors affecting volumetric efficiency
Clearance volume - gaskets , bearing wear down
Valves – dirty, leaky, spring tension
Leakage past piston rings
Insufficient cooling water due to dirty coolers
High cooling water temp.
High air inlet temp.
Throttling of air intake due to
Dirty intake filter
Insufficient suction v/v lift
Strong suction v/v spring
Compressed Air System
Two Stage Compressor
Two Stage Air Compressor
Air compressor valve
 Components
Air Filter
Material – felt or paper, metal gauze or nylon strands
Remove contaminant to prevent
abrasive wear of piston rings, valves
deposit on valves casing source of ignition

Very dirty filter will cause

Reduction in suction pressure
Increase in compression ratio
Increase in discharge temperature may cause coke deposit
Less air flow and danger of overheating coke deposits
In extreme case disch. temp.may exceed auto ignition temp
of LO, resulting in an explosion
Components
Suction & Delivery Valves
Low inertia automatic valves which operate on low diff
pressure
Material used for
Valve seat – 0.4% carbon steel hardened & polished surface
Valve plate – Nickel or stainless steel hardened & polished
Spring – tempered hardened steel
Usually of same type, only differences are
spring load and the valve lift
Excessive lift causes impact & v/v breakage
Late closing of v/v affects volumetric efficiency
Coke deposits make v/vs
leaky & sticky
causing overheating
reduce vol. efficiency
Trunk type piston is used in single acting compressor
Tandem piston is used in multistage compact design
Aluminium alloy material is used for
good friction properties
high strength with low coeff. of thermal expansion

Piston rings material is alloyed cast iron

HP piston rings are made thicker
Bearings
Thin shell type in modern compressor
Requires L.O. pressure above 2 bar
Conventional thick shell can run even at 1.0 bar

Crankshaft
Usually forged carbon steel integral with counter
weight
Cast steel being fatigue prone is not used
 Inter-cooler & After-cooler

Multi Tubular
Copper tubes expanded in brass
tube plates with allowance for
expansion of tube nest
Cast iron casing with bursting
disc, to protect against sudden
over pressure
Drain pocket to remove moisture
Relief v/v to protect against over
pressure on air side
In case of tube leakage, leaky
tube is plugged / replaced
Inter-cooler & After-cooler
Single Coil Type
A single long copper coil
is used
Casing is protected by
bursting disc
in case of coil leakage,
complete replacement
of coil is required
Provided to drain off water & oil automatically
from compressed air system

Water must be drained at each stage to prevent

Removal of oil film from cylinder wall, assisting wear of
liner and piston ring
Corrosion to form iron oxide, assisting degradation of
oil

Requires regular inspection

 Unloader

Prevents compressor to start on load

Some of many methods to unload compressor cylinder
throttling of suction
speed variation
by-pass discharge to suction
depression to hold suction v/v plates on their seats

Last two methods are most widely used in marine compressors.

 Unloader
Suction Valve Depression

Fitted on each stage

suction valves

Actuated by solenoid or
pilot air
Size depends on engine requirements

Should have sufficient capacity to give

12 consecutive starts for reversible engine
6 consecutive starts for non reversible engine

Fabricated from good quality mild steel with UTS 500 MN/m2 with
an
elongation of not less than 23% to 25%
having one longitudinal welded seam
welded hemispherical dish at the ends with elliptical manhole door

Must be cleaned internally & coated with paint or copal varnish

Fitted with necessary mountings

Air Receiver
Air Receiver
Mechanics of Explosion
Oxidation of oil
Rate of oxidation depends on
Temperature
Air pressure
Presence of catalyst – iron oxide
Exposure time
Heat generated due to oxidation is removed by air flow & CW
Coke Deposits
Due to oxidation coke deposit on leaky valves cause high temp.
Max tolerable thickness of coke layer – 2 mm (for 10 to 30 bar
press)

Explosion
Fire can initiate in unloaded compressor
Burning coke could act as ignition point for air-oil vapour mixture
Spontaneous ignition followed by weakening the metal wall can
initiate explosion
Prevention of Explosion
Design of compressor Installation
Air flow rates & exposure time
Prevent oil accumulation
Air flow rate of 8m/sec keeps the pipes clean by moving the
large
oil droplets to cooler areas
Operation & Maintenance
Lubricating oil – oil feed rate, viscosity, antioxidant, oil
change, draining of excess oil
Air filtration - contaminants
Temperature – air flow, leaky valves, CW flow, clean coolers
Catalysts – Iron oxides (rust) – requires regular draining of
water
Function of Compressor Lubricant
Lubricate bearing, gears & rubbing parts
Remove heat due to compression & friction
Provide sealing to minimise air loss
Prevent corrosion
Be suitable for long term use
Lube Oil Recommendation
Lubricating oil is recommended according to compressor
classification
-- light, medium, or heavy duty depending upon parameters as:
Compressor design
Type of cooling
Number of stages
Air flow rate
Oil retention time
Ambient condition
Ambient temp
Coolant temperature
Presence of dust or oil vapour
Operating system
Continuous or intermittent
maintenance
According to normal lubrication requirement and to minimise coke
deposit
Plain mineral oil is not used as it oxidises easily at high temp. and
pressure
Lube oil must have anti-oxidant additives for good oxidation resistance
Low viscosity – easy spreading, effective sealing,
hydrodynamic lubrication with low friction
Flash point – above 220oC
Oil with minimum heavy ends

If oil has too broad distillation range, the more volatile portion may
tend to evaporate leaving behind heavier ends in the hot zone
Product made of chemical synthesis
Raw materials or base stock may be mineral oil
derived
The chemical structure is planned and controllable
The molecular structure is variable so that product
performance may be modified
Additive treated to produce lubricant with superior
properties to mineral oil
Synthetic Base fluids

 Hydrocracked
 Polyalphaolefin (PAO)
 Ester

Properties
 Exceptional low temperature flow
 Very high viscosity index
 Exceptional thermal and oxidation resistance
 Low volatility
 Exceptional film strength
 Choice of Lubricant

Full Synthetic

Semi-Synthetic

Price
Semi-Hydrocracked

Mineral

Performance
 Synthetic Oil
Advantages
Superior to mineral oil & excellent protection against corrosion
Suitable for severe operation
Good thermal & oxidation stability
Operate over wide temperature range
Good viscosity vs temp. properties
Low pour point (-33OC to - 48OC)
Good wear resistance with low viscosity
Reduced maintenance
Cleaner compressor due to minimum deposits
Long service life
Enhanced safety due to high flash point (246 to 266 deg C)
Disadvantages

Less compatible with seals & paint

Initial cost is high, but overall it may be
cost effective
Possible mineral oil incompatibility
Potential toxicity
Operational Problems of Air Compressor
Drop of compressor capacity / pressure
Choking of air filter
Valves leaking
Increased bumping clearance
Leaky piston rings
Worn crank pin or journal bearing
Leaky cooler / breakdown of cooler
L.O. contamination
Fire and explosion
 Case Study

Intercooler Casing Burst

Vessel Type : Tanker
Main Engine: Sulzer

The Accident
The vessel was in HK at outside anchorage.
One of the electric motor driven main air compressor
intercooler casing burst that resulted in the 4th Engr.
losing his life and 3rd engineer seriously injured.
 Investigation
An immediate investigation revealed following facts:
Heavy sludge deposits in intercooler cast iron casing
Cooling water inlet valve was jammed in the open
position and partially chocked
This allowed restricted cooling water into the cooler
The casing bursting disc had ruptured
HP and LP relief valves were found in following
conditions
HP relief v/v lifted @ 235 bar! Relief v/v spindle was
partially seized
LP relief v/v was in proper order; but lifted at 10 bar
The compressor was surveyed 14 months before the
accident; but record showed no mention of the
followings:
testing of inter coolers and relief valves
Poor maintenance
3rd engineer had started the compressor
with disch. valve shut
Relief v/v was inoperable which eventually
resulted in the bursting of the intercooler
casing
It is essential all safety devices of a
pressure unit are thoroughly inspected for
their general condition, operation, settings
etc at every inspection and survey
Machinery eg air compressors, positive
displacement pumps must not be started
with discharge line blocked or shut