How much do air leaks really cost?
Published: 08 April, 2024
We all know that compressed air leaks are a huge source of energy (and money) waste, but do you know how much they really cost? After conducting around 60 surveys in different facilities from different industries, using an ultrasound camera, UE Systems concluded that the average leak would cost around £1200 per year. When you think that any industrial site will have dozens or even hundreds of leaks, you can quickly realise the savings potential. PWE reports
The urgency for leak detection
As energy prices rose up to historical peaks, compressed air leaks have also become more expensive than ever. In these times, finding and repairing those wasteful leaks must be a priority for any maintenance team looking to cut down on energy waste.
Knowing that, on average, approximately 10% of all energy supplied to an industrial facility will be used for compressed air; and that the average leak rate across a site in industry is 30%, you can quickly realise that compressed air leaks will be one of the greatest sources of waste in industry.
How to conduct effective air leak surveys
The efficacy of detecting leaks is widely acknowledged through the use of ultrasound inspection instruments. In addition to their adept leak identification capabilities, digital instruments offer the added advantage of recording decibel levels at the leak point. This recorded data serves as the foundation for calculating the associated leak costs and generating comprehensive reports.
Normally these are handheld and listen-only instruments – still very effective in detecting leaks, but more recently, with the deployment of ultrasound cameras, you can also see the leaks, in real time, turning leak surveys into a much more effortless and quicker task.
Considering the following factors:
1. Air leaks now incur a substantial cost, with each individual leak averaging £1200 per year.
2. The identification of air leaks has been significantly simplified, presenting a quicker and more efficient process.
As a result, the acquisition of an ultrasound camera becomes an indisputable necessity for most industrial facilities. These state-of-the-art cameras seamlessly display leaks on the screen, allowing for the detection of dozens of leaks within minutes
Leak survey examples & the cost of leaks
The examples of leak surveys below were provided by UE Systems who conducted them using its UltraView camera - an advanced leak detection device. The company demonstrated how in a matter of hours (sometimes even minutes), the UltraView was able to detect and quantify leaks worth thousands.
Commercial Printing Facility – one single leak costing £1650 per year
The printing industry uses a lot of compressed air (especially when printing newspapers and magazines, like this facility), making these facilities ideal candidates for an efficient leak detection device. With a proper leak detection programme in place, cost avoidance can be huge. One single leak was estimated to cost £1650 per year. A 30-minute survey at this facility carried out with UE Systems’ UltraView detected six leaks amounting to a cost of £7000 per year. This is only a small part of the total amount of leaks estimated at this site, since almost all printing machines will need compressed air.
Besides the energy waste, these leaks bring other issues: as leaks on the printing machines will bring down the system pressure, this will compromise the printing quality. Therefore, finding and repairing leaks in the printing industry is not just a matter of energy savings, but also of assuring the final product quality.
Costly compressed air and argon/nitrogen leaks found at pharmaceutical company
Pharma uses a lot of compressed air, as well as special gas, which means leaks can quickly become a huge source of energy waste - this was highlighted when UE Systems surveyed a pharmaceutical plant using the UltraView. During the demonstration the company was able to pinpoint and report 29 compressed air leaks in about two hours of survey.
The total cost for these leaks is estimated at a costly £28,313 per year. This includes some major leaks, including one huge leak which has been undetected so far and costing the company £5809. The UltraView was able to easily pinpoint it even at a five-metre distance.
Besides compressed air, UE Systems could also detect some very expensive argon and nitrogen leaks. Special or innate gas leaks can become quite expensive, as the price for these is usually 3 or 4 times more expensive than compressed air.
In the video it can be seen how the UltraView could find an argon leak at a tank. This is a leak losing 9 litres per minute of argon, meaning that, if it were left undetected, the tank would be empty in about 3 to 4 days.
Food packaging plant: detecting compressed air, vacuum and vent leaks
At a food packaging plant UE Systems did a quick survey using its UltraView camera. Packaging facilities normally rely heavily on compressed air, so it was no surprise that the company was able to quickly find 22 leaks amounting to almost £13,000, including two leaks at hard-to-reach locations which it could easily detect even at a five-metre distance. These would be much more difficult to pinpoint using traditional listen-only ultrasound instruments.
On top of that, the UltraView could also detect three vacuum leaks and one leak in the ventilation system, as can be seen in the video. Vacuum leaks are a big issue in many industries, as they are very hard to detect and can quickly lead to product quality loss and increase in production time.
Also, interesting to note that leak at the ventilation system, which is not a typical application for the UltraView but was very important at this facility, since the maintenance team wants to assure the vents are completely sealed, otherwise dangerous gas might not be expelled from the facility as they should.
In conclusion, the true cost of air leaks in industrial facilities cannot be overstated, both in terms of energy waste and financial implications. With the average leak costing around £1200 per year, the cumulative impact on operational expenses becomes evident when considering the multitude of leaks present in any given facility.
As energy prices continue to fluctuate, the urgency for detecting and repairing compressed air leaks has never been more pronounced. Given that approximately 10% of an industrial facility’s energy consumption is attributed to compressed air, and with the average leak rate at 30%, addressing these leaks is paramount for reducing overall energy waste in the industry.
The adoption of advanced ultrasound inspection instruments, particularly ultrasound cameras, has revolutionised the efficiency of leak detection. These instruments not only identify leaks with precision but also provide real-time visualisations, transforming what was once a time-consuming task into a swift and effortless process.
In light of the above findings, investing in ultrasound cameras for leak detection emerges not only as a cost-effective measure but as a strategic imperative for industrial facilities aiming to enhance energy efficiency, minimise financial losses, and uphold product quality standards.
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