Reciprocating Compressors (Vertical,Horizontal), Pressure Boosting & Evacuation Solutions

Reciprocating compressors pull vapor into a cylinder through a suction valve by drawing back a piston to create a low pressure area in the cylinder. They pressurize the gas by pushing the piston back up into the cylinder to squeeze the gas out through the discharge valve.

A compressor valve consists of four parts: a seat, bumper, disc and spring. The spring rests against a bumper and pushes the disc against the seat. The disc seals off the flow passage through the seat. If more pressure builds up on the seat side than the bumper side, the disc will be forced away from the seat and gas will flow through the valve.

In order for compression to take place, the piston must be sealed against the wall. This seal is made with several piston rings. To avoid contaminating the process gas with lubricating oils, the piston rings must be made of a self- lubricating material. Corken’s piston rings are usually made of glass-filled PTFE. Gas pressure in the cylinder is used to press the piston ring against the cylinder wall. Ring expanders are used to push the ring towards the cylinder wall so high pressure gas may flow behind the ring.

Piston rings form a good dynamic seal but they are not tight enough to seal all the pressure and gas inside the cylinder; and additional seal is required to do this. This seal is the piston rod packing. The piston rod and packing is a seal that is located at the bottom of the cylinder. It is composed of several parts, the most important being the self-lubricating PTFE V-rings that slightly seal against the piston rod. A spring is included in the packing assembly which allows a slight amount of float to reduce the friction. The rod packing also seals oil in the crankcase out of the compressor chamber to prevent contamination of the gas.

Depending on the type of gas, there will be one to three sets of packing per piston rod. One set of packing controls leakage and oil contamination of the vapor to a satisfactory level for most commercial LP gas and ammonia applications. When leakage and contamination must be held to an absolute minimum, three sets of packing separated by two distance pieces may be utilized. Corken manufactures vertical and horizontal compressors with single, double and triple packing options.

Reciprocating Compressors (Vertical) | Reciprocating Compressors (Horizontal)

Many liquefied gas piping systems do not provide ideal net positive suction head (NPSH) conditions for liquid pumps. As a result the poor NPSH conditions lead to excessive pump maintenance. Since reciprocating gas compressors are only exposed to vapors, they are not affected by poor NPSH conditions. Many liquefied gas pressurized tanks such as tank cars and buried tanks have top unloading connections. A reciprocating compressor is the perfect solution for transferring liquids to and from tanks of this type as well as vapor recovery.

Corken offers a variety of piston rod packing configurations, distance piece options, and oil-free gas compression for wide range of industrial gases. The D-Style is a double packed reciprocating compressor that has one distance piece and offers a high level of leakage containment. However, our T-Style design is a triple packed compressor that has two distance pieces that offer the highest level of leakage containment for today's industrial gases. Depending on the needs of your application, each distance piece can be pressurized, purged, or vented. Both styles are available in single- and two-stage, air or water cooled, and single and double-acting versions. Lubricated and non-lubricated versions are also available.

Our industrial compressors are compatible with a wide variety of hazardous, volatile, toxic, and corrosive gases such as chlorine, vinyl chloride, methyl chloride, sulfur dioxide, butadiene, hydrogen, helium and many more. Each compresssor is available with a standard mounting or we can custom engineer a compressor package for you. We now offer an ASME B31.3 - 2012 piping option for all of our compressor packages and skids.

Each product group below is designed for a specific level of leakage containment. To find a compression solution for your application, select one of the product groups listed below.

D-Style Oil-Free Reciprocating Compressors

D-style vertical compressors utilize two sets of V-ring packing per piston rod and one (single) distance piece
The lower packing set has an adjustable packing screw used to maintain the sealing performance over the life of the packing
With the exception of models D791 and D891, all D-Style compressors deliver oil-free gas compression
Typically used in toxic and corrosive applications where oil-free gas is required and leakage containment is desirable

Operating Specifications

  • Piston displacements up to 198.8 m3/hr
  • Working pressures up to 82.8 bar
  • Brake horsepowers up to 45 hp (34 kW)
  • Maximum outlet temperature: 177 °C

T-Style Oil-Free Reciprocating Compressors

T-Style vertical compressors utilize three sets of V-ring packing per piston rod and two (double) distance pieces
The lower packing set has an adjustable packing screw that is used to maintain the sealing performance over the life of the packing
All T-Style vertical compressors deliver oil-free gas compression
Typically used in toxic and corrosive applications where oil-free gas and maximum leakage containment are critical

Operating Specifications

  • Piston displacements up to 198.8 m3/hr
  • Working pressures up to 82.8 bar
  • Brake horsepowers up to 45 hp (34 kW)
  • Maximum outlet temperature: 177 °C

Pressure Boosting Solutions

Reciprocating compressors are often used in gas and air boosting applicaitions. When a natural gas well has reached the end of it's life, the gas pressure begins to drop. Many times a Corken compressor is used to boost the gas pressure flowing to the pipeline. In air boosting applications, the vast majority of plant-air systems are capable of generating up to 125 psig (8.6 bar). Special considerations within a plant may require air — oil free or lubricated — at higher pressures. A Corken air booster compressor takes plant air and increases it up to 1,080 psig (74.4 bar). The high pressure plant air is used to operate hand tools and air operated equipment within the facility.

Evacuation Solutions

Corken's reciprocating compressors are commonly utilized on mobile evacuation units transported by trailer or truck to an emergency evacuation site or evacuate tanks before performing routine maintenance one the tank

Delivering Pumping Solutions® Since 1908