Couplings for piston compressors with electric motor:

Piston compressors are a crucial component in industries that compress gases, such as the hydrogen industry. At Neuman & Esser, a well-known manufacturer of piston compressors, choosing the right coupling plays a key role in ensuring the performance and reliability of its systems.

We’ll be shedding light on the development and transition from steel disc couplings to highly flexible couplings at Neuman & Esser, highlighting the significance of dynamic stiffness.

The era of steel disc couplings

Up until the year 2000, steel disc couplings were the standard choice for piston compressors at Neuman & Esser. These couplings were used to establish the connection between a motor and a compressor. Although they proved to be effective, failures increasingly occurred in the field. This led to a thorough review and the development of a new coupling concept.

The transition to highly flexible couplings

Having faced the challenges of steel disc couplings, Neuman & Esser established a new concept that favours the use of highly flexible couplings. The key aspect when selecting these couplings is the emphasis on dynamic stiffness. By selecting a very soft elastomer coupling, critical natural frequencies are shifted far enough out of the operating speed range. The high damping reduces vibrations and

torque peaks.

The iTOK 24000D .HN. TK. 1015 ZS 25

An excellent example for the successful use of highly flexible couplings at Neuman & Esser is the iTOK 24000D HN. This dual element coupling was specially developed for applications with a torque range up to 48.000 Nm and is characterised by its very low stiffness of less than 200 kNm/rad. This choice has proven to be extremely positive.

The iTOK series and its increasing use

The highly flexible iTOK series from REICH has proved increasingly popular at Neuman & Esser due to its power density and reliability. As it offers the optimum performance in terms of transmittable torque in a specific installation space with the lowest possible dynamic torsional stiffness when correctly designed, the service life of the compressor system can be extended, in turn increasing efficiency. Since introducing the iTOK at Neuman & Esser, it has been used for subsequent projects as a matter of course.

Conclusion

Using highly flexible couplings in piston compressors for both electric motors and engines has proved groundbreaking not only at Neuman & Esser, but also at other well-known manufacturers. The transition from steel disc couplings to couplings with low dynamic stiffness has revolutionised the drive train.

This success underscores the importance of choosing the right coupling in industrial applications where precise and reliable power transmission is crucial.