n TECHNOLOGY March 2025 www.drivesncontrols.com 14 AN INDIAN COMPRESSOR manufacturer, Elgi Equipments, has announced a technology that it says will revolutionise the way compressors operate in plants with dynamic air demand, achieving energy savings of up to 15%. The system, called Stabilisor, is designed to address the challenges of unstable compressor performance, ineciency and excessive wear, caused by frequent load/unload cycles. In industrial applications, the gap between a compressor’s capacity and a plant’s air demand is inherently dynamic. This variability leads to the compressor cutting in and out frequently, destabilising its operation and impairing critical components. Traditional ways of dealing with this – such as increasing the reservoir volume, altering the cut-in/cut-out pressures, or adding VSDs – often fall short, introducing new ineciencies or higher costs, according to Elgi. The new system – which Elgi calls “a signicant leap forward for industrial air compression” – is based on a principle called “recirculate and recover”. It aligns a compressor’s capacity with air demand using controlled recirculation and recovery techniques. By stabilising airows, the system reduces load/unload cycles, extends equipment lifespans, and achieves energy savings of up to 15% in typical applications. It also reduces system ineciencies, and maintains high performance across varying demand patterns. The system incorporates precisionengineered progressive and on-o valves to recirculate excess capacity. It uses stabilisation zones and low-pressure recovery techniques to balance airow demands dynamically, reducing energy losses by targeting pressure points with minimal dierences, while enhancing reliability. The new system competes with more expensive VSDs, which adjust compressor speeds dynamically, but can introduce instabilities and failure risks, according to Elgi. The new failsafe system ensures that even in the event of a malfunction, the compressor will continue to run without disruption. Despite the new system’s energysaving potential, the cost to customers is said to be minimal. “Compared to a VSDequipped compressor, our stabiliser system reduces costs by 30%, while ensuring higher reliability,” says Elgi’s managing director, Dr Jairam Varadaraj. “With its energy-ecient design and potential to reduce wear-and-tear, the Stabilisor aligns with global sustainability goals,” he adds. “Its implementation in industrial plants represents a shift towards greener, more cost-eective manufacturing processes.” The Stabilisor system works with rotary screw compressors which make up 8590% of the global market for industrial compressors. With modications, it can also be adapted for use with positive displacement compressors. Some early adopters have already reported signicant savings. One user with a 45kW compressor reports that stabiliser system helped it to save around £3,500 within six months. “This level of energy savings means the entire machine pays for itself in just two years,” says Elgi’s director of technology, Venu Madhav. Elgi has patented the Stabilsor’s design and control methodology worldwide, and plans to make the system standard on its future compressors. It will be oering the system globally in a choice of a “light” version designed to be tted in the eld, or a factory-tted “heavy” version. Elgi estimates that if the new technology was implemented on all compressors around the world, it could save up to 19 trillion kWh of electricity annually. The company, founded 64 years ago, says it is currently the world’s sixthlargest air compressor manufacturer. It is aiming to break into the top three by 2035-36, with revenues of at least $2bn. Its immediate goal is to achieve revenues of $450m in 2025-26, and it expects the new stabiliser system to accelerate its growth substantially. www.ELGi.com THE GERMAN CONTROL and measurement specialist PCE Instruments has launched a power meter for precise recording of current and voltage values in applications such as electric motors and drives. The PCE-PA 6500 power meter can monitor energy from main and subdistribution points to devices and systems. The Cat III 300V device senses currents and voltages via Rogowski coils or split current transformers without interrupting the power supply. The recorded values – including active, apparent and reactive power – are transmitted every second to a terminal device via a WLAN. Historical data can be viewed as tables or graphs, or exported in the CSV format. Configuration is carried out via a WLAN and Web browser, or using an Android app. Even if there is no Internet connection, no data is lost. A built-in 32GB memory stores measurement values as CSV files, every second more than a year. The data can be processed later or sent by email, FTP or directly from the platform. The IP40-protected power analyser can measure AC voltages from 40–400V, currents from 2–9.5kA, and active power from 80W–3.8MW. Measurements are carried out via magnetic measuring tips or connection terminals. There are three versions with differing current transformers and measuring ranges. The split current transformer version has an inner diameter of 11mm and can measure up to 80A AC. The Rogowski coil versions are available in two sizes: one with an inner diameter of 50mm for up to 20kA AC; the other with a diameter of 150mm for up to 9.5kA AC. www.pce-instruments.com/english Analyser helps to identify power-guzzling drives and motors Compressor ‘revolution’ promises energy savings of up to 15% Elgi says that its Stabilisor technology will enhance compressor eciency at a low cost
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