Screw compressors hold a significant position in the field of industrial gas handling due to their high efficiency, stability, and adaptability. Their unique twin-screw design enables them to handle various gas media, leading to widespread applications in industries such as petrochemicals, food and pharmaceuticals, and power energy.
Below are the main application scenarios for screw compressors and analyses of typical cases.
Gas Compression in the Petrochemical Industry
In refineries and chemical plants, screw compressors are commonly used to compress process gases such as hydrogen, nitrogen, hydrocarbon gases, etc. Their oil-free (dry) or oil-injected (wet) designs can meet different purity requirements.
Case Study:
At a large refinery in Saudi Arabia, screw compressors are used to compress circulating hydrogen in a hydrocracking unit. The compressors feature a dry, oil-free design to ensure hydrogen purity, while variable frequency drive (VFD) regulation adapts to flow fluctuations, achieving annual energy savings of over 20%.
Clean Gas Supply in the Food and Pharmaceutical Industries
The food & beverage and pharmaceutical industries impose extremely high cleanliness requirements on compressed air. Oil-free screw compressors provide contamination-free compressed air, meeting GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) and FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) standards.
Case Study:
A European multinational pharmaceutical company uses oil-free screw compressors to supply clean compressed air to production lines, eliminating the risk of lubricant oil contamination. Simultaneously, a heat recovery system utilizes compression heat for workshop heating, increasing overall energy efficiency by 30%.
Instrument Air and Gas Turbine Auxiliaries in the Power Industry
In gas turbine power plants, screw compressors provide instrument air for control systems and are used for gas boosting. Their fast start-stop capability and load regulation make them ideally suited for the dynamic demands of power systems.
Case Study:
A combined cycle power plant in China employs screw compressors to supply auxiliary air to gas turbines. An intelligent control system synchronizes operation with generator load, reducing unplanned downtime by approximately 200 hours annually.
Wastewater Treatment and Biogas Recovery
In wastewater treatment plants, screw compressors are used in aeration systems to supply oxygen to microorganisms. Additionally, in biogas recovery projects, compressors compress low-pressure biogas for power generation or grid injection.
Case Study:
A wastewater treatment plant in Germany uses screw compressors to compress biogas (60% methane content). After desulfurization treatment, the gas is used for power generation, meeting over 80% of the plant's electricity demand. The annual biogas processing volume exceeds 10 million cubic meters.
Non-Conventional Gas Handling
Screw compressors can adapt to high-humidity, dusty, or corrosive gases, making them perform exceptionally well in handling non-conventional gases like landfill gas and biomass gas.
Case Study:
A landfill site in California, USA, utilizes corrosion-resistant screw compressors to process landfill gas containing hydrogen sulfide. Through three-stage compression, the gas pressure is increased to 2.5 MPa for use as raw material in a nearby chemical plant.
Summary of Technical Advantages:
High Efficiency & Energy Savings:
Advanced rotor profiles and VFD technology reduce energy consumption.
Low Maintenance:
Few moving parts and long maintenance intervals, suitable for continuous operation.
Strong Adaptability:
Capable of handling wet, dusty, and corrosive media.
With their outstanding performance and flexibility, screw compressors have become core equipment for industrial gas handling. In the future, with the further development of intelligent and energy-saving technologies, their application scope will become even broader.
