PILLER has opened its own (test) plant for mechanical vapor recompression at the production facility in China; for quality assurance, endurance tests and for demonstrating the machines in ongoing operation. 

In this test plant for MVR, PILLER verifies the machine's operating performance as a whole unit and in terms of individual critical components in an endurance test. Materials and coatings as well as innovative material concepts or system-related developments such as regulating and control components can undergo both conventional quality tests and real process cycles as early as in the development stage. This means that the development tools are constantly being validated.

The plant type is known as a falling-film evaporator, in which pure water circulates. The plant is designed to  operate in both vacuum and overpressure conditions, with possible variation of the blower's volumetric and mass flows. The operation range of the plant is as follows:  

• Overhead vapor mass flow: 2.4 t/h - 7.0 t/h
• Temperature range: 80°C - 120°C
• Pressure range: 500 mbar - 2,000 mbar absolute

Quality assurance sets new standards

"Being able to test the newly developed machines, individual components and innovative solutions in ongoing operation represents genuine added value in terms of quality assurance", reports Dr. Steffen Kuberczyk,  Global Sales Director at PILLER. “This gives us a chance to share the empirical data obtained even more easily with our customers and incorporate it into further product developments." 

Piller Blowers & Compressors is well known for continuously developing new solutions: Improved performance and efficiency are of prime importance to companies and customers. The subject of energy efficiency is also becoming increasingly important throughout the world. This is ensured through innovation and top product quality.

Endurance test in operation with steam

A coated impeller made of high-strength aluminum is currently tested in a PILLER VapoFan – a vertical vapor compressor for mass flows between 200 and 5,000 kg/h, with a PILLER motor and VFD. The use of aluminum represents the latest technology in steam applications and is only possible with effective corrosion protection, which is why PILLER sees particular opportunities here in the further development of the materials.

At the same time, a new control unit, the PILLER Operation Point Monitoring (OPM) system, which metrologically records operating data and evaluates it with respect to critical operation, is being integrated into the test. The new OPM provides all data in real time via a cloud service. Thus the  operators have access to the machine conditions , whether related to machine or process situation, instantaneously and can start e.g. necessary maintenance activities prior to any machine failure.

This is followed by tests in operation with the latest innovation – MADE BY PILLER: The latest high-performance blower – with key data of 17 K saturated vapor temperature at a compression ratio of 1.8 and tip speeds of >400 m/s in operation – has already proved a success in internal standardized tests and will now also prove itself in an endurance test in the test plant. 

Presentation and demonstration possibilities in the ongoing process

An additional plus point: Besides the test possibilities, the plant also offers the opportunity of presenting technical know-how. "With regard to the extension of our technology leadership, this is an important step for us. We are positioning ourselves clearly as MVR specialists: With holistic solutions for the process industry – from the machine to service and monitoring during operation", says Dr. Steffen Kuberczyk.