The difference between micro-oil air compressor and oil-free water lubrication

There are significant differences between micro-oil air compressors and oil-free water-lubricated air compressors in terms of lubrication media, air quality, energy efficiency, maintenance costs and applicable scenarios, as follows:

1. lubricating medium and working principle

1. micro-oil air compressor: Lubrication, sealing and cooling functions are realized by injecting a small amount of lubricating oil into the screw cavity. The lubricating oil is mixed with air during the compression process, and the compressed air needs to be filtered by an oil-gas separator and a post-filter (such as a precision filter element) and then output. The final oil content is usually 3-5ppm (high-end models can be reduced to less than 1ppm).
2. Air compressor without oil and water lubrication: Using pure water as the lubricating medium, completely replace the traditional lubricating oil. During the compression process, water also assumes the functions of sealing, cooling and lubrication. Advanced sealing and isolation technology ensures that the compressed air is pure and oil-free, and the oil content is ≤ 0.001ppm, reaching the ISO 8573-1 Class 0 oil-free standard.

2. air quality and cleanliness

1. micro-oil air compressor the output air has a high oil content and needs to rely on post-processing equipment to reduce the oil content, but it cannot completely eliminate the risk of oil pollution. It is suitable for general industrial scenarios that are not sensitive to oil, such as automobile maintenance, electronic manufacturing (non-core processes), food packaging (non-direct contact), etc.
2. Air compressor without oil and water lubrication: The output air is 100 oil-free, which can stably reach the Class 0 standard to avoid product scrapping or process failure caused by oil pollution. It is suitable for medicine, food, electronic manufacturing, aerospace and other fields with strict air quality requirements, such as drug drying, medical equipment production, high-precision instrument manufacturing, etc.

3. energy efficiency and operating costs

1. micro-oil air compressor:

   • energy consumption: Lubricating oil reduces friction and air leakage and improves compression efficiency, but requires additional energy consumption to drive the oil and gas separation and filtration system.
   • Maintenance costs consumables such as lubricating oil, oil filter and oil and gas separation core need to be replaced regularly, and the maintenance frequency is high. For example, when an auto parts factory uses a micro-oil air compressor, the oil filter replacement cycle is 5000 hours.

2. Air compressor without oil and water lubrication:

   • energy consumption: The cooling effect of water lubrication is better than that of oil lubrication, and it can realize close to isothermal compression, and the energy saving effect is remarkable. Compared with the two dry twin screw energy saving more than 15%, compared to the first dry twin screw energy saving more than 36%.
   • Maintenance costs: No need for lubricating oil and oil filters, only need to replace the water filter element and air filter element, and the maintenance cost is reduced by more than 40%. For example, after an infant milk powder factory switched to an oil-free water-lubricated air compressor, the annual maintenance cost was reduced by hundreds of thousands of yuan.

4. equipment stability and reliability

1. micro-oil air compressor: Lubricating oil can reduce component wear and extend equipment life, but it is necessary to regularly check the oil and gas separation effect to prevent oil pollution.

2. Air compressor without oil and water lubrication:

   • stability: Water lubrication technology avoids component wear and frequent maintenance problems caused by high temperature of the dry screw, and the main engine has a longer life.
   • Reliability axial and radial force balance design, with water film lubrication technology to reduce component load, more stable and reliable operation. For example, after an electronic manufacturing company uses an oil-free water-lubricated air compressor, the performance attenuation remains within 3% after 20000 hours of continuous operation.

5. environmental protection and safety

1. micro-oil air compressor: Lubricating oil may leak or volatilize, causing pollution to the environment, and waste oil and oily wastewater need to be treated.

2. Air compressor without oil and water lubrication:

   • environmental protection: The discharged water does not require special treatment and meets environmental protection requirements.
   • Security: When compressing flammable and explosive gases, the low temperature characteristics of water lubrication can avoid the risk of explosion; the stainless steel host can withstand corrosive gases to ensure safe operation.