One of the benefits of a desiccant air dryer over a refrigerated dryer is that it can operate at a consistently low dew point.
Refrigerated air dryer dew point.
Refrigerated air dryers use a heat exchanger to condense water out the of air stream.
An air to air heat exchanger is used to both pre cool the incoming air and re heat the outgoing air as it leaves the dryer.
They can get dew point to as low as 40 degrees below zero.
There are a few key points to keep in mind when shopping for a refrigerated compressed air dryer.
If your application requires ultra dry air iso quality classes 1 2 3 or is likely to operate in below freezing conditions this is the best option for your compressed air system.
They can usually produce air that has a dew point no lower than 5 degrees celsius 41 f.
A regenerative desiccant dryer typically delivers a dew point of between 40 c 40 f and 73 c 100 f a refrigerated dryer delivers a dew point not lower than approximately 2 c 35 f a deliquescent dryer delivers a dew point suppression that fluctuates with air temperature.
The compressed air is cooled in an air to refrigerant heat exchanger to about 35 f a temperature where the moisture condenses and is drained off.
The lowest pressure dew point class for a refrigerated dryer air compressor is class 4.
The highest pressure dew point for a refrigerated dryer is class 6.
It is not possible to achieve dew points below freezing with a refrigerated dryer.
Desiccant air dryers absorb water vapor from the air stream and can drop dew point significantly more.
Refrigerated dryers work by cooling the air to low temperatures and condensing much of the water vapor.
Example of a refrigerated compressed air dryer.
On the control panel you see a start stop button and the dew point indicator.
Class 4 delivers a pressure dew point of 38 f.
Refrigerated dryers should not operate below the class 4 range because the water vapor will freeze in the dryer.
An ideal solution to the problem of compressed air applications that are sensitive to dew point is to use air compression systems with dryers that can remove moisture from your compressed air.
That means that there s still some water vapor leftover in the air.
This means that the compressed air leaving the dryer has a pressure dew point of 35 to 40 f.
What to look for when buying one.
The compressed air leaving the dryer has a pressure dew point of 35 to 50.
What is a refrigerated air dryer.
Optimally designed refrigerated dryers can produce air with dew points to approximately 36 f 2 c.
This one is installed after a rotary screw compressor atlas copco ga37 37 kw compressor.
The air is then reheated in an air to air heat exchanger by means of the incoming air which also is pre cooled before entering the air to refrigerant heat exchanger.