Assessment and redesign of a compressed air system in a steel foundry

Compressed air systems are regarded as one of the main utilities in industry; however, their continuous operation is not only inefficient but expensive. A case study on the energy efficiency of a large and complex compressed air system located inside a steel foundry is presented, where a reduction in energy consumption could be achieved. Through pertinent data recollection, and with the measurement of the most important variables in a compressed air system (flow, pressure, power), a characterization of the largest areas’ performance, is produced. Several possibilities for performance enhancement are considered and put forward.