What is Air Compressor and how it Works?

Air compression is essentially a twofold process in which the pressure of air rises while the volume drops. In most cases, compression is accomplished with reciprocating piston technology, which makes up the vast majority of compressors on the market.

All the air compressor manufacturers follow almost same standards and they use common set of components to build it explain bellow.

Every compressor with a reciprocating piston has the following parts:
  • Crankshaft
  • Connecting rod
  • Cylinder
  • Piston
  • Valve Head
Air compressors, for the most part, are powered by either gas or electric motors — it varies by model. At one end of the cylinder are the inlet and discharge valves. Shaped like metal flaps, the two valves appear at opposite sides of the cylinder’s top end. The inlet sucks air in for the piston to compress. The compressed air is then released through the discharge valve.

In certain air compressor models, the pressure is produced with rotating impellers. However, the models that are typically used by mechanics, construction workers and crafts people tend to run on positive displacement, in which air is compressed within compartments that reduce its space. Even though some of the smallest air compressors consist of merely a motor and pump, the vast majority have air tanks. The purpose of the air tank is to store amounts of air within specified ranges of pressure until it’s needed to perform work. In turn, the compressed air is used to power the pneumatic tools connected to the unit supply lines. While all of this is going on, the motor repeatedly starts and stops to keep the pressure at a desired consistency.

What the piston effectively does with its back and forth movements is create a vacuum. As the piston retracts, the space in front gets filled with air, which is sucked through the inlets from the outside. When the piston extends, that same air is compressed and therefore given the strength to push through the discharge valve, simultaneously holding the inlet shut and into the tank. As more air is sent into the tank, the pressure gains intensity. That’s all the air compressor works.

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