With Emmie 2, Changing Oil Is No Longer Needed

Alfa Laval has just released Emmie 2, an updated and enhanced version of their portable centrifuge. The operation and control of the Emmie 2 has been significantly improved over its predecessor.

The Emmie 2 mobile cleaning system for hydraulic oil comprises a trolley mounted centrifugal separator and a mobile electrical oil heater. Wheeled between hydraulic systems, Emmie 2 removes water and 99% of all particles in the size range 2 µm-5 µm.

It comes complete with its ancillary equipment and only requires a 230v power point.

The result is a dramatic increase in the reliability of the hydraulic systems, the life-time of the hydraulic oil is extended, filter cartridge consumption is reduced and there is less contaminated oil to dispose of.

Particles that contaminate oil come from different sources, including wear from metal, plastic, and rubber components, paint flakes, and even airborne dust. Left alone in the oil, these particles will wear down and clog the equipment.

The smallest particles, less than 5 micron, are the worst problem. It is not economical to catch such small particles with a filter. Water in oil is bad news, too. It deteriorates the oil's properties. It also damages valves and pumps, due to oxidation of oils and additives, as well as corrosion.

Normally, these problems can be avoided by periodically changing the oil, usually based on the manufacturer's recommendations. In between scheduled oil changes, oil filters are often changed to assist in keeping the oil as clean as possible

However, changing oil and filters in dirty environments like experienced in mining is hard to achieve without introducing contaminants in the process. But, until recently, it has been the only real option used in the many industries like the mining industry.

It turns out that the use of centrifuges is a way to get around changing oil filters and oil, a way that can also save an incredible amount of time and money.

A centrifuge has the ability to remove contaminants including water from the oil, in many cases, even when the equipment is actually operating. In the maritime industry, it has been a standard practice for decades for ships to have centrifuges continuously cleaning engine lube oil and fuel.

Rather than bore you with the finer technical details, it will suffice to say that the centrifuge removes these contaminants down to the micron level by accelerating particle settling and liquid separation thousands of times. Some discs are used in the centrifuge to increase the particle separation area, making the centrifuges incredibly efficient.

Emmie 2 builds on the 5 years of success of its predecessor. The controls are now much more user-friendly. A small PLC and Variable Speed Drive have been added on-board to improve the control and operation of the centrifuge. Now, all the operator has to do is insert the viscosity grade of the oil and the machine will do the rest. In the past, the operator had to adjust the flow rate. Now, once the oil type is defined, the machine sets the right flow rate for the oil.

The benefits of using the Emmie 2 are great. Among other benefits, Emmie 2:

* Saves money by extending the life of equipment due to reduced wear and corrosion of components, thereby reducing or eliminating the need to purchase expensive replacement equipment
* Saves money by reducing maintenance costs. Imagine the cost savings of not having to change the oil as regularly, or change oil filters at all.
* Increases the productivity of equipment because you do not have to stop the equipment to change filter cartridges
* Is environmentally friendly because there is no oil loss, no cartridge disposal, reduced risk of oil spillage and it extends the operating life of the machine's hydraulic or lube oil.
* Cleans oil better than any machine fitted filters. It easily removes particles in the 1 micron size range.

Alfa Laval is a leading global provider of specialized products and engineered solutions.

Our corporate mission is to optimize the performance of our customers' processes time and time again. We help customers to heat, cool, separate and transport products such as oil, water, chemicals, beverages, foodstuff, starch and pharmaceutical.

We operate in vital areas - much of the world's energy from diesel, turbine and nuclear power stations is generated with the help of equipment from Alfa Laval.

Alfa Laval lies behind many innovations that have brought better, safer food at lower price to more people.

Alfa Laval helps industry to recover surplus energy and raw materials, to purify waste water and industrial fluids, to minimize emissions, to handle slop oil and to convert wastes into bio gas.

Alfa Laval delivers equipment for water purification and desalination of seawater in areas where fresh water is in short supply.

Company: Alfa Laval
Contact:
Yves Lettens
Office phone: +61 2 8822 2700
Office fax: +61 2 8822 2799
e-mail: yves.lettens@alfalaval.com

This release was published on openPR.