American University of Beirut

MECH-410 Thermal Fluids Lab

Lab IV
Compressor Scenario

Objectives

Study a given compressor as a viable option for pumping tractor tyres

MECH 410 - Thermal Fluids Lab Lab4 - Compressor Scenario

1 Introduction
A farm tractor manufacturer is considering using a Gilbarco single-stage reciprocating piston air
compressor for the purpose of filling tractor tires. They have contracted you, shirkeh mfalseh
consultants s.a.r.l., to determine whether this is a good idea. In particular, the manufacturer would
like to know how much time it will take to fill a single tractor tire whose inner volume is 22 liters to
a pressure of 43 psig using this compressor.

2 Experimental Setup
The compressor is located within the wind tunnel / fluids lab on the 4th floor of the SRB. It is a
single-stage reciprocating piston air compressor attached to a 30 US Gallon steel tank* equipped
with a pressure sensor, temperature gage and a power meter. There is also a secondary temperature
sensor which measures the ambient temperature.
All of the measurements (power, pressure, temperature) are connected to a data acquisition card
which feeds the information to the adjacent computer that is running labview. Labview saves all of
the outputs (running time, tank temperature, pressure and power consumption) on a text file once
the program is stopped (see figure below for a sample). The ambient temperature IS NOT SAVED
in this text file and has to be recorded manually.

Procedure:
The experimental procedure has 3 parts:
1. Discharging the pressure within the tank to ambient pressure before the experiment starts.
The valve is located underneath the tank (ask the supervisor / instructor for its location).
When opening the valve, note that a pressurized tank discharging will generate significant
amount of noise, so open it slowly to keep the noise level low and bearable.
2. The electrical switch which turns on the compressor (this should be started AFTER the
labview program starts recording data otherwise the first few seconds of the experiment will
not be recorded in labview). The compressor will automatically shut down when the
pressure within the tank reaches approximately 1097kPa.
3. A labview program. All you need to do is press on play and it will start recording. When the
program is stopped, a pop-up window will ask for a filename to save the data. Make sure to
save it with a '.txt' extension so you can easily open it afterwards.

 If you need to run it a second time, make sure to discharge the tank first.

* Normally, the compressor is not operated with the steel tank connected; at the factory, the
compressor outlet is directly connected to the tire.

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MECH 410 - Thermal Fluids Lab Lab4 - Compressor Scenario
Questions:
 The manufacturer would like to know how much time it will take to fill a single tractor tire
whose inner volume is 22 liters to a pressure of 43 psig using this compressor.
 The tractor manufacturer would also like to know whether the first tire they fill on a given
day will take more or less time than the second one, and, if so, why.
 The manufacturer would like to know whether the volumetric efficiency of the compressor
varies with discharge pressure, and if so, why?
 The manufacturer would like to know how much work (in kJ) it will take to pump up the
tractor tire using this compressor, and how much work would be required if the compression
process were totally reversible (hint: think exergy).
 How would the temperature rise within the tank affect the pressure within the tank?
(knowing that after the compressor is turned off, the tank will eventually cool down to room
temperature). Will the pressure be significantly affected? What solutions would you
recommend?

Appendix
Sample data file:
time(sec) T(K) P(KPa) Power(W)
0 299.079 100.693 0
1 299.079 100.668 0
2 299.079 100.669 1191.846
3 299.078 101.822 664.965
4 299.078 103.537 539.552
5 299.078 105.01 545.813

1. First column shows running time of experiment

2. Second column is the temperature within the tank (in Kelvin)
3. Third column is the pressure within the tank (in kPa)
4. Fourth column represents the instantaneous power consumption by the compressor (in W).
Note that the first 2 seconds have 0W power consumption because the compressor had not been
turned on yet.

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