A booster type compressor is an air compressor with the function of expanding the outlet pressure of the equipment. In other words: a booster compressor receives air from the primary compressor and increases its pressure. They can be positive or dynamic displacement equipment and can use any type of compressor element (screw, claw, scroll…) to carry out their task, although the most common boosters are piston ones.
We must bear in mind that by increasing the compression ratio (this is the difference between the pressure of the inlet air and that of the outlet air) the boosters will require more power and produce less flow. Thus, the power curve required in a booster compressor depends on the suction pressure and, in general, has a shape similar to that of a vacuum pump.
Booster compressors are used in applications where a higher pressure is needed for a thread. The sectors of application where these machines can be used: automotive, electronics, food, pharmaceutical and aeronautical industries, among others.
Pressure intensifiers
Pressure boosters are a type of compressed air driven booster compressor (also known as thrusters). They increase the pressure of a gas for special applications, such as testing valves, pipes and hoses in a laboratory. For example, a pressure of 7 bar can be increased in a single stage up to 200 bar; in multistage equipment, it can be intensified up to 1700 bar. However, intensifiers only operate at very low flow rates.
When the propeller is started, the low pressure piston is depressed and expels the gas from the compression chamber at high pressure. The intensifier can operate in a cyclical process and up to a predefined pressure level. All inert gases can be compressed in this way; and air can also be compressed, but it must be completely oil-free to avoid autoignition.