Atlas Copco ZH+ oil-free centrifugal compressor range

Atlas Copco has launched an energy-efficient centrifugal compressor range which it claims saves up to 7% on specific energy at full load and up to another 9% at part load.

Delivered as a plug-and-run package, Atlas Copco’s ZH+ oil-free centrifugal compressor range employs advanced aerodynamics to reduce energy consumption in the core. All components of the package are designed based on computational flow dynamic (CFD) analysis to reduce pressure drops in the package.

The result, the company says, is a reduction of specific energy up to 7% at full load compared to the previous model. Inlet guide vanes (IGVs), which are part of Atlas Copco’s standard scope of supply, further reduce energy cost by 9% at part loads as compared to a throttle valve control.

According to the company, as energy consumption constitutes 80% of the life cycle cost of a compressor, the product reduces overall total cost of ownership.

The compressors employ features such as milled impellers and servocontrolled IGVs to ensure maximum uptime.

The ZH range provides clean air that complies with ISO 8573-1 Class 0 (2010) certification. A fail-safe sealing system prevents the possibility of contamination of the air with oil, without the need of any external buffer air. Oil fumes from the gearbox are captured by a motorised demister, thus eliminating the risk of ingestion of oil fumes along with the intake air. This safeguards the end product against oil contamination.