Air Squared News
Three-stage Scroll Vacuum Pump
New three-stage scroll pump is first of its size to produce 5 mTorr vacuum without turbo boost – 10 times greater than standard-size pumps
July 2009 – Air Squared’s new three-stage compact scroll vacuum pump (CSVP) is unique in its size class, producing up to 5 mTorr (6.5 x 10-6 atmosphere) vacuum without a turbo pump – 10X greater vacuum than standard pumps needing turbo boost to reach that level. With a package size of just 19.2 x 15 x 14.5 cm (7.5 x 5.9 x 5.7 in) – about half the size of standard pumps – the oil-free CSVP can replace a turbo-boosted pump to save weight, space, cost and maintenance in applications ranging from spectrometers and gas detectors to analyzers, autoclaves and lab vacuum stations. The patent-pending oil-free CSVP weighs just 4.5 kg (10 lb), ideal for portable instruments, such as the Homeland Security Air Sample analyzer for which it was designed. The CSVP can also be turbo-boosted to produce even greater vacuum levels.
The new three-stage pump delivers exceptional performance for a vacuum pump of its size with a displacement of 57 LPM (2 CFM), noise level less than 45 dBA, and power requirement of just 150 watts. Made in the USA, it is competitively priced. The rotary scroll design provides quiet, balanced, pulse-free operation. Power delivery is continuous, which virtually eliminates pulsation and associated noise. There are only two primary moving parts, with no inlet or discharge valves to break or make noise, and no associated valve losses.
The operating element of a scroll compressor is made up of two identical involutes, which form right- and left-hand components. One scroll is indexed or phased 180 degrees with respect to the other so the scrolls mesh. This indexing creates crescent shaped gas pockets, bounded by the involutes and base plates of both scrolls. In operation, one scroll remains fixed; the other is attached to an eccentric driven by the motor shaft. As the moving scroll orbits the fixed scroll, the gas pockets formed by the meshed scrolls follow the spiral inward to compress air, which is discharged through an outlet in the center of the scrolls.