Used in the online water washing system for air compressors
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The 5th-stage shaft vibration of the unit’s compressor experienced several instances of high vibration levels, exceeding 50μm; one of these instances even caused the unit to shut down. Recently, it is planned to carry out an online water washing of the impellers on the unit before parking for maintenance. The problem is that it has been over 3 years since the unit was put into operation, and the water flushing system has never been used! It’s likely that the compressor impeller has accumulated a lot of scale over time. Could cleaning this scale cause the rotor to become unbalanced? Does anyone have experience using an online water flushing system?
Can it be washed online? The vibration of our air compressor shafts is also quite high (in some cases, the shaft vibration reaches 65 um). We suspect there may be a problem with the rotor’s dynamic balance; it would be great if online washing were possible.
In water washing systems, such as multi-axis air compressors manufactured by MAN, Atlas, and others, atomized water is sprayed out from nozzles. As long as scaling is the cause of the problem, online water washing will definitely improve the situation without causing imbalance in the rotor.
Online washing is harmless and beneficial for the impeller.
Our level 5 shaft vibration increased sharply in a short period of time, while the vibration at the co-axial level 4 vibration measurement point was not significant. The online water system is already included upon installation
It is not possible to determine what is causing it at the moment; impeller wear, oil seal scraping, or impeller structure issues could all be responsible. Hearing you say that, I’m not as worried about online washing anymore. I would also like to ask whether you think an online washing system is necessary. We have removed all online washing systems from our new project – could this cause unnecessary problems in the future?
Given this, why are so few domestic units performing online water washing operations? As requested by the foreigners, water washing needs to be done once a day.
We kept using it, and the results were good; later we modified an air compressor as well, and the outcomes there were satisfactory too.
Is the cleaning sequence also from high-pressure to low-pressure impellers? How long is each stage of the impeller visible? What’s the pressure? How does the vibration of the unit change during the cleaning process?
I have experience with water-washed centrifugal compressors, hehe. The main thing to note here is that the axial force generated upon water entry is different, and it is necessary to control the amount of water to prevent it from entering the oil system. Use a low speed and wash slowly.
The main thing to note here is that the axial force generated upon water entry is different, and it is necessary to control the amount of water to prevent it from entering the oil system. Use a low speed and wash slowly. The unit’s shaft displacement is interlocked with that of its adjacent units; the flushing water enters through the annular nozzles at various inlets, where it turns into a mist that is sprayed onto the impeller by suction force. How much displacement will occur? We plan to perform a water wash before parking for maintenance, at the rated speed.