Energy accounts for as much as 75% of the lifetime cost of a compressed air system. That means even small efficiency improvements can have a big financial (and environmental) impact. Monitoring basic performance parameters can be the first step in achieving these big savings. This is where compressed air and gas measuring sensors come in.

The cost of leaks

Small things can add up over time. This is especially true for leaks in compressed air systems. Leakages are often considered the biggest waste of energy in compressed air installations. Up to 30% of the cost of compressed air can be saved by eliminating leaks.

What is energy monitoring?

Maximizing compressed air system efficiency doesn’t stop with plugging leaks. Many other parameters play a key role. These include flow, pressure dew point, pressure, temperature, power consumption and air quality:

Increasing the operating pressure by just 1 bar boosts energy costs by 6%-10%. Keeping the operating pressure as low as possible is key.

An analysis of load/unload performance shows that there is 30% input even when supply is at 0%. This illustrates the importance of having as few unload hours as possible.

Measure the flow when production is halted. You might find there is still a flow of 100 cubic meters per hour flow. This is caused by leakages.

Pneumatech’s easy-to-install compressed air and gas measuring sensors help you monitor these parameters and implement the necessary interventions.

Flow sensors: Usable for different gases – compressed air, nitrogen, argon, carbon dioxide and oxygen.

Dew point sensors: These sensors are long-term and stable with quick adaption time and large measuring range. Our dew point sensors can be used with all types of dryers: desiccant dryers, membrane dryers, and refrigeration dryers.

Pressure sensors: We offer a large selection of pressure sensors with different ranges for each measuring purpose.

Temperature sensors: You can choose from our large selection of temperature sensors for the measurement of ambient air or gas temperature.

Compressed air quality measurement: This monitors compressed air for the presence of residual oil and particles according to ISO 8573.

Current/effective power meters: The PMH PM 5110 measures voltage and current and calculates the active power [kW], the apparent power [kVA], the reactive power [kVar], and the active energy.

All readings at a glance

Once all your sensors are set up, you don’t have to monitor their findings individually. All  sensors, as well as any third-party sensors and meters, can be connected to  Chart Recorders. These offer the convenience of viewing all the readings in one glance and of storing the data.

Intuitive software that brings it all together

The PMH Basic Data software makes all this data available in graphic and table form. Its intuitive operation allows for all important product functions to be retrieved via the dashboard. Users can view the minimum or maximum measured values, the time and the length of occurrence in one overview. The software issues a consumption report for all connected sensors at daily, weekly or monthly intervals.

Article source：Pneumatech