Reducing Compressed Air Temperature 1

[sreid]

I need a way to reduce the temperature of compressed air. The air is already filtered and dehumidified but the compressor and receiver are outside and the air can be at 45 C. I need to get 10 SCFM down to 20 C or less.

I have a chiller I can use to circulate cold water but I don't know what type of heat exchange to look for. I could use a shell-tube heat exchanger but those are usually used for liquid to liquid.

Any and all suggestions welcomed.

 

[insult2injury]

A finned crossflow HEX would probably work well. Contact a manufacturer and they should provide performance data as well as help you to determine the proper size.

I2I

 

[MedicineEng]

Is there any way that you can shade your compressor and receiver? It will not go to 20C but can significatively reduce the size of your HE and the consumption of chilled water.

 

[Montemayor]

For 10 Scfm of air at 45 ^oC you shouldn't need to consult a manufacturer. All you need to do is obtain a suitable length of 1/2" copper tubing, wind it into a helical coil and submerge it into a small open tank where you have the chilled water running through it.

You can easily calculate the required area for the copper tubing using the equation

Q = U A LMTD

If you have problems with the equation, just use approximately 20 feet of coil and try it. Depending on the temperature of the chilled water, you should easily be able to get it cooled down to 20 oC.

If you want a deluxe, engineered cooler call Graham Helifow for information on which one of their small, compact spiral coolers would work. This is their area of expertise and I've used them for more than 40 years. They work perfectly with chilled water and small flows like this one.

 

[ClydeMule]

A small brazed plate work work easily.