Title: Mathematical model for a compressed air system that couples demand and supply

Authors: Mohamad Thabet; David Sanders; Giles Tewkesbury

Addresses: School of Mechanical and Design Engineering, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK ' School of Mechanical and Design Engineering, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK ' School of Mechanical and Design Engineering, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK

Abstract: This paper presents a mathematical model for a compressed air system (CAS) that couples system supply and demand. The supply side contains components responsible for production, treatment and storage of compressed air, while the demand side contains components that deliver and consume compressed air. Components considered include compressor, cooler, storage tank, linear actuators and an air blower. Simulations were performed to study the impact of pressure regulation and storage tank size on system energy consumption. Results showed that pressure regulation reduced air and energy consumption and a properly sized tank volume reduced energy consumption while maintaining good system pressure stability.

Keywords: compressed; air; systems; modelling; simulation.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMMNO.2022.119780

International Journal of Mathematical Modelling and Numerical Optimisation, 2022 Vol.12 No.1, pp.1 - 14

Received: 26 Dec 2020
Accepted: 25 Mar 2021
Published online: 20 Dec 2021 *