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Compressed Air Quality and Oil Carryover
The compressed air quality that is needed is
a critical element when it comes to compressor rentals.
Different machines vary widely in terms of the purity of the
delivered air.
Most rental equipment falls into one of three
"air quality" categories:
1. Inherently oil-free compressors,
which do not add ANY oil to the air being compressed;
2, Lubricated compressors with filtration,
most of the oil added to the air during the compression
process is removed via filtration.
3. Standard electric oil-flooded rotary screw
compressors (which usually include aftercoolers) and
Standard Construction grade portable compressors (which
usually do not include aftercooling)..
The benefit of renting inherently oil-free
compressors is obvious – no oil in the air. But because they
are truly oil-free, they rent for higher rates than
lubricated compressors.
For applications that require oil-free
compressed air, it is important to rent only inherently
oil-free compressors, just as it is required to
purchase them for your permanent installations.
The Instrument Society of America definition
of "Instrument Quality" Air is:
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A maximum oil content of less than one part
per million (by weight)
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The particle size in the air stream must be
less than 40 microns; and
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The dew point must be 18ºF below the
minimum temperature to which the air is exposed
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