Centrifugal compressors, as a common industrial equipment, are widely used in the petrochemical industry. With their unique technology and product characteristics, they play a crucial role in this industry and are an important component of general-purpose equipment in the petrochemical industry. This article will introduce the application of IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressors in the petrochemical industry and their advantages in improving production efficiency and energy conservation.

I. Application of Centrifugal Compressors in the Petrochemical Industry

Centrifugal compressors are used in multiple key areas in the petrochemical industry, becoming indispensable equipment due to their high efficiency and stability.

①、Instrumentation and Valve Air Supply: Ensuring Equipment Reliability and Cost Reduction

Specific precision instruments and control valves rely on compressed gas for normal operation and startup functions. Even a small amount of oil contamination in the compressed gas can lead to equipment failure. Oil-free centrifugal compressors guarantee an oil-free environment, ensuring longer equipment lifespan, lower failure rates, reduced maintenance costs, and higher-quality gas output.

②、Gas Separation: Efficient Application and Optimized Gas Production

Centrifugal compressors are widely used in oxygen and nitrogen production systems due to their high efficiency and reliability. They use centrifugal force generated by high-speed rotation to separate gases. Compared to other types of compressors, they have a compact design and high operational efficiency, able to continuously and stably provide high-quality oxygen and nitrogen for production processes. Their constant operation greatly reduces the possibility of production interruptions, ensuring the continuity and stability of the gas supply system, which is especially important for production lines that rely on precise gas ratios and continuous operation.

③、Pipeline Cleaning: Safety Assurance for Pure Gas

Compressed gas is widely used as an efficient and convenient cleaning medium for pipeline cleaning to maintain safety. With strong pressure, compressed gas can quickly remove dirt, residues, and other impurities from the pipeline. It is worth noting that even trace amounts of oil can pose potential fire hazards under certain conditions. Therefore, strict control of the oil content in compressed gas is crucial during pipeline cleaning operations. Centrifugal compressors can effectively prevent the generation and mixing of oil during compression, ensuring the purity of the compressed gas.

④、Supporting Process Operations: Ensuring the Stability and Reliability of Production Processes

Compressed gas plays a crucial role in various production processes such as desulfurization, catalyst regeneration, acid oxidation treatment, and gasoline desulfurization. Even slight oil contamination can severely impact product quality, damage equipment performance, and even cause unexpected production interruptions. Ensuring pure and oil-free compressed gas is particularly crucial during calibration and testing of equipment, as it effectively prevents contaminants from interfering with measurement data accuracy and eliminates reading deviations caused by pollution. Therefore, choosing efficient and reliable centrifugal compressors is crucial for ensuring smooth production processes and stable product quality.

II.The Core Advantages of IHI-Sullair Centrifugal Compressors

①、Ensuring Pure and Oil-Free Compressed Gas

In the petrochemical industry, which has stringent standards for the quality of compressed gas, IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressors stand out due to their superior technological advantages. They have obtained the CLASS 0 oil-free certification from the international authority TÜV, ensuring that the compressed gas meets the industry's highest oil-free standards. We adopt an advanced labyrinth seal design to achieve absolute sealing isolation between the gas and lubricating oil, eliminating oil contamination and producing clean and oil-free compressed gas that meets the petrochemical industry's demand for high-quality oil-free gas.

②、High Operational Efficiency and Stable Gas Supply

Due to industry characteristics, the petrochemical industry has high requirements for compressor reliability and efficiency. Compressors are typically required to operate smoothly and reliably for over 20,000 hours without failure. IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressors ensure high reliability in continuously supplying oil-free compressed gas through the application of labyrinth sealing technology and tiltable bearing design, thereby safeguarding the normal operation of equipment within the user's production system and the stability of the process flow. The main drive gear bearing system adopts a composite design combining shaft diameter bearings and thrust bearings, further enhancing the overall reliability and durability of the compressor. The efficient and stable operation of the centrifugal compressor ensures the continuity and consistency of the production process, effectively ensuring product quality and process stability.

③、Energy conservation and reasonable energy consumption

To meet the large and continuous gas supply demands in the petrochemical industry, the IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressor achieves efficient compression and energy conservation through optimized design. Our centrifugal compressor adopts advanced inlet guide vanes, which significantly conserve energy compared to traditional butterfly valve designs. Additionally, we utilize high-performance thrust rings and diffuser devices to effectively enhance impeller rotation stability and improve overall mechanical efficiency, thereby minimizing energy losses caused by internal turbulence. These advanced technologies enable the IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressor to fully meet the large-scale and uninterrupted gas demand of petrochemical enterprises while maximizing energy conservation goals, bringing dual improvements in economic and environmental benefits to enterprises.

④、Wide range of air volume adjustment

Facing the varying pressure and flow demands for compressed gas in the petrochemical industry, the IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressor is equipped with advanced high-performance rotors and impellers, offering a wide range of air volume adjustment and high compression efficiency. This feature allows it to flexibly respond to the high-speed and high-pressure changes in gas pressure and flow demanded by user enterprises in the petrochemical industry, thereby effectively improving production efficiency.

⑤、Easy maintenance

Compressor equipment in the petrochemical industry typically operates in harsh environments of high temperature, high pressure, strong corrosion, and continuous production, thus demanding high standards for maintenance and care. The impeller of the IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressor is made of titanium alloy and stainless steel materials with excellent wear resistance and corrosion resistance, effectively resisting damage under severe conditions and reducing the frequency of component replacements. Petrochemical enterprises attach great importance to the selection, operation, and maintenance of centrifugal compressors, aiming to ensure their durable and stable operation and maximize production efficiency.

With its leading technology and excellent performance, the IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressor fully meets the key demands of the petrochemical industry in terms of compressed gas quality, efficiency, and stability. By providing pure and oil-free compressed gas, ensuring stable and efficient operation, achieving low energy consumption through energy-saving design, offering a wide range of air volume adjustment capabilities, and providing convenient maintenance and care services, the IHI-Sullair centrifugal compressor has gained widespread application and high recognition in the petrochemical industry. With the continuous development of the industry and technological advancements, IHI-Sullair will continue to uphold its innovative spirit, continuously improve product performance, provide more efficient, reliable, and environmentally friendly compressed gas solutions for petrochemical enterprises, jointly write a new chapter in the development of the petrochemical industry, and make greater contributions to building a sustainable industrial ecosystem.