The oil separator core is made of multiple layers of fine glass fiber and is mainly used for oil-water separation. The mist-like oil vapor in the compressed air can be almost completely removed after passing through the oil separator.
Causes and solutions for oil separator failures:
1. Blockage of the oil separator core will cause excessive motor current in the air compressor, leading to motor overload. Excessive current will also shorten the service life of the contactor or cause the contacts to burn out. Generally, there is a pressure gauge in front of the filter element of a screw air compressor. When the pressure difference between the pressure gauge in front of the filter element and the air supply pressure gauge reaches 0.08 MPa, the oil separator core should be replaced.
2. Damage to the oil separator core will cause the air compressor to consume a lot of oil. Even the oil content in the air tank and pipelines will be high. In severe cases, air compressor oil can be discharged when the drain valve of the air tank is emptied. The main causes of this failure are: (1) failure to replace the oil separator in time; (2) use of inferior oil separator; (3) failure to operate according to installation specifications. 3. Oil separator core burnout: This manifests as partial or complete carbonization of the filter screen, and even the burnt-out metal casing of the oil separator core. The main causes of this failure are: (1) poor quality air compressor oil; (2) poor quality oil separator core; (3) during installation, there was no reliable connection between the oil separator core casing and the oil separator tank, and no grounding. Static electricity caused the oil mist to ignite, burning out the oil separator core.
4. Poor separation effect: Excessive oil content in the compressed air damages the post-processing equipment. The main causes of this failure are: (1) poor quality oil separator core; (2) installation not performed according to specifications.
Remedies: Ensure the quality of the oil separator core and air compressor oil, and that installation and maintenance services are up to standard. If the surrounding environment is heavily polluted, consider installing a pre-filter.