Service and repairs to all leading brands of reciprocating compressors. We also carry parts and spares and offer SLAs for continued efficiency and peace of mind
With decades of experience; the right attitude, equipment, expertise and high quality parts, your screw compressor gets the right attention and service, extending your ROI.
Servicing all leading brands.
» Click Here to find out more!
The serving of reciprocating compressors, whether hermetic or semi-hermetic, is one of our specialities.
A reciprocating compressor or piston compressor is a positive-displacement compressor that uses pistons driven by a crankshaft to deliver gases at high pressure. It is different from a screw compressor in that it
The intake gas enters the suction manifold, then flows into the compression cylinder where it gets compressed by a piston driven in a reciprocating motion via a crankshaft, and is then discharged. Applications include oil refineries, gas pipelines, chemical plants, natural gas processing plants and refrigeration plants. One specialty application is the blowing of plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET).
In the ionic liquid piston compressor many seals and bearings were removed in the design as the ionic liquid does not mix with the gas. Service life is about 10 times longer than a regular diaphragm compressor with reduced maintenance during use, energy costs are reduced by as much as 20%. The heat exchangers that are used in a normal piston compressor are removed as the heat is removed in the cylinder itself where it is generated. Almost 100% of the energy going into the process is being used with little energy wasted as reject heat.
Reciprocating compressors are piston-driven and deliver stepped control with specific outputs per piston. They work well in applications under high temperature and are energy-efficient. They typically use ammonia refrigerant, which is in high demand as it is considered a more eco-safe option. Research and development by major manufacturers of reciprocating compressors continue to deliver enhancements and new features that keep these compressors “evergreen”.
Reciprocating compressors have more moving parts than screw compressors, making repairs and services more rigorous. The suction and discharge valves in particular have to be replaced frequently. Hwever, repairs and services on reciprocating compressors can mostly be done on site.
The obvious best practice is to have an SLA in place so that this is 'planned for' and there are no surprises in the future. These too can be arranged.
Gas transmission pipelines, petrochemical plants, refineries and many other industries all depend on this type of equipment. High growth in the household appliances market will drive reciprocating air compressor demand as they are extensively used in refrigeration and air-conditioning systems.
There are a lot of moving parts like piston, piston ring, crankshaft, connecting rod, valves, etc. causing wear & tear. Hence lesser reliability & more chances of breakdown.
The internal temperature at which the pistons operate is around 150 to 200 Deg C. This is because of the friction generated by the contact of piston rings against the cylinder walls.
These above reasons make the reciprocating compressors suitable for intermittent use only. Therefore they need to be sized at least 50% higher than the actual required CFM (Air Flow).
Sizing them 50% higher allows the compressor to cycle from time to time and will prevent excessive heat generation and wear and tear.
This has around 8 or more valves in total & hence will require frequent cleaning due to high Carbonation. High Maintenance.
High wear & tear of moving parts like piston rings, valves etc. Stock of spares is a must.
Space required is more. None of brands are offering air dryer mounted on the same air receiver / tank.
These compressors require foundation as well as grouting for large machines due to high unbalanced forces & high vibration. Here the pistons rise and fall (vertical machine) or move back and forth in the cylinder thereby causing too much vibration. Hence it involves additional foundation cost.
These compressors require separate compressor room or a sound isolating box as noise levels could go as high as 100-dB (A). So keeping it near the point of application is a disturbance.
Therefore the Extra piping cost is involved.
No oil separation system therefore oil content in outlet air is relatively much higher compared to screw compressors. This oil content increases when piston rings and oil rings wear out allowing oil to move up to the compression side.