Vacuum pumps manufacturer Pfeiffer Vacuum showcased its new Roots pumps from the HiLobe series at the Hannover Messe trade fair that took place earlier this year in Germany.

Experts presented the innovative vacuum pumps at the fair – in addition to the company’s extensive product portfolio – which can be used for numerous industrial vacuum applications, such as electron beam welding, vacuum furnaces or freeze drying, notes Pfeiffer Vacuum Technology chief technology officer Ulrich von Hülsen.

The compact Roots pumps offer a wide nominal pumping speed range of 520 m3/h to 2 100 m3/h. This is made possible through the new drive concept in conjunction with frequency converters. Because of its individual speed control, the pumps can be precisely tailored to customer-specific requirements.

Owing to this powerful drive concept, the HiLobe achieves about 20% shorter pump downtimes than conventional Roots pumps. Rapid evacuation reduces costs and increases the efficiency of the production system.

He adds that the pumps of the HiLobe series are of particular interest for fast evacuations used in load-lock chambers and leak detection systems. Further, the pumps are suitable for use in coating applications.

The maintenance and energy costs of the HiLobe are 50% lower compared with conventional Roots pumps. The reason for this is a drive with energy efficiency Class IE4 and the special rotor geometries of the pumps.

The sealing concept also contributes to this. The pumps are hermetically sealed to the atmosphere and have a maximum integral leakage rate of 1.10-6 Pa m3/s. Dynamic seals are eliminated and, as a result, maintenance is only required every four years, notes Von Hülsen.

Owing to the innovative sealing concept in the suction chamber, the use of sealing gas is superfluous in most applications, which also has a positive effect on the operating costs. Since the operation of the HiLobe Roots pumps is possible even at ambient temperatures of up to 40 ºC with flexible air cooling, cost-intensive water cooling is unnecessary.

Further, control and communication are the essential factors for increasing system availability. “The intelligent interface technology of the HiLobe allows very good adaptation and monitoring of the processes. This facilitates anticipatory and efficient work.”

By integrating such condition monitoring, information about the condition of the vacuum system is always available.

In addition, condition monitoring increases system availability allowing users to plan maintenance and repair measures in a useful and anticipatory way and prevent cost-intensive production downtimes. These advantages lead to a long service life and maximum operational safety.

Depending on their suitability for the existing system, the HiLobe vacuum pumps can either be aligned vertically or horizontally. This allows maximum pumping speed and a more customised and efficient use of space at the customer’s production site.

“With the HiLobe Roots pumps, our customers are able to reduce energy and operating costs and consequently make production more cost-efficient.”

For a sustainable reduction of energy consumption and operating costs, it is not enough to solely base it on the energy requirements of a vacuum pump. The type of cooling, the maintenance intervals and the control also have a decisive influence on the overall energy balance.

“We are proud to be able to offer our customers this holistic approach,” concludes Von Hülsen.