Effective vibration damping for a 14-ton compressor

For our client, a company specialising in installation solutions for industrial and production plants, we recently developed a tailor-made solution for vibration damping of an ammonia compressor with an operating weight of 14 tons, using our Walraven VibraTek solutions.

The challenge

In order to achieve an optimal vibration damping of approx. 98%, vibration dampers with a deflection of up to 20mm had to be used. Since the machine’s centre of gravity does not match its geometric centre, precise calculation of the loads at all six attachment points was required – with individual spring insulators for each position.

The solution

The use of spring-based vibration damping is particularly useful for machines with high dynamic loads (e.g. pumps, fans, internal combustion engines) because it:

1. Reduces wear and improves operating conditions
2. Does not transmit vibrations to the building or adjacent installations
3. Completely avoids wear and tear on the anchoring of the machine to the ground or to the supporting structure.

For this project, we developed a special six-spring package, precisely tailored to the requirements of the machine.

Since the system is tall and slender and its centre of gravity is high up, we also integrated EPDM vibration dampers. These do not support the weight of the machine, but do compensate for its deflection, which occurs with spring-based bearings – for maximum stability!

For further information on vibration damping you can contact our support team to request technical advice.