Compact Two-stage Scroll Vacuum Pump Awarded Phase I SBIR Funding
Broomfield, CO (PRWEB) September 22, 2016 -- The US Navy has identified an autonomous vacuum system as a key component to eliminating maintenance on current shipboard vacuum isolation systems. The cost of maintenance for current vacuum insulation systems is estimated at $550,000 US per ship over the life of the ship. While autonomous vacuum systems already exist, they are very large, require excessive power, and are expensive to purchase and operate. With Phase I Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding, Air Squared will demonstrate a small-scale vacuum maintenance device that could ultimately be used in US Navy cryogenic and superconducting applications.
The Phase I effort takes a multi-stage vacuum approach, leveraging two pumping technologies, to deliver a compact, robust, and autonomously-driven vacuum system. The system integrates an Air–Squared designed two-stage scroll vacuum pump with a proven turbomolecular backing pump. The two-stage scroll vacuum pump acts as a roughing pump, delivering 50 mTorr vacuum from atmospheric pressure, and then the turbomolecular backing pump delivers 0.1 mTorr vacuum from 50 mTorr.
Air Squared’s patented two-stage scroll pump allows for the miniaturization of positive displacement scroll vacuum pump technology without degradation in vacuum performance. Integrating this technology with existing off-the-shelf miniature turbomolecular technology provides a pathway to realizing a compact and cost-effective autonomous vacuum system, without sacrificing performance or reliability.
The US Navy has identified several Critical Performance Metrics (CPM) for the vacuum system:
- Provides a vacuum below 1x10-4 torr (0.1 mTorr)
- Pumps down the system from 0.1 Torr (100 mTorr) to 1x10-6 Torr (0.001 mTorr)
- Discharges to atmospheric pressure (760 Torr)
- Offers a size less than 35 in3
- Costs less than $2,000 US
- Weighs less than 5 pounds
- Connects to the cryostat
- Is easy to install or replace
- Sustains performance over a thirty-year ship life
- Senses degradation in the vacuum level
- Loses pressure if the pump experiences power loss
- Is immune to electromagnetic interference
- Handles a rugged shipboard environment
- Survives US Navy shock and vibration qualification
While all CPMs will be considered throughout development, the primary goal of the Phase I effort is to accomplish CPMs 1 through 6. Air Squared will first evaluate appropriate turbomolecular vacuum pumps and existing Air Squared two-stage scroll vacuum pumps. A full system performance model will then be executed over a range of system configurations and operating parameters to identify potential preliminary system architectures. Finally, fabrication and extensive testing of the selected system architectures will then demonstrate the feasibility of CPMs 1 through 6.
ABOUT AIR SQUARED
Air Squared is the industry leader in oil-free scroll design and manufacturing. By introducing a simple design with fewer moving parts, scroll technology has established itself as a highly efficient, very reliable, cost-effective alternative. Through a growing line of compressors, vacuum pumps, and expanders, Air Squared makes the many advantages of oil-free scroll technology available to OEMs worldwide. Learn more at http://airsquared.com.
This material is based upon work supported by the Department of Defense under SBIR Topic: N161-024-0557. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Defense.
Kirk Shaffer, Air Squared, http://airsquared.com/, +1 (303) 466-2669, [email protected]
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