Gas compressors are indispensable in the energy sector, both for upstream hydrocarbon extraction and processing applications and in electricity and heat production plants; they are also used in the chemical processing of many industries for the treatment of technical process gases.
In more recent times, gas compressors have also become protagonists in the agricultural industry, in the food industry and in waste management sector, thanks to the practice of recovering biogas generated by fermentation and transforming it into biomethane, which can be used for energy purposes.
Given the special nature of the fluids treated (natural gas, technical gas, biogas), gas compressors must be designed to ensure maximum reliability and safety, even in harsh environmental conditions such as outdoor sites with great temperature range.
The purification treatment that transforms biogas into biomethane, called “upgrading”, consists in the elimination of impurities, contaminants and excess carbon dioxide. This is a particularly “green” practice because, in addition to using waste to produce energy, it avoids releasing large quantities of methane, a gas highly responsible for the greenhouse effect, into the atmosphere.
In these processes the compressors play a fundamental role in capturing and conveying the biogas to the upgrading system and, subsequently, to the distribution network or to the motor of the cogeneration plant. Applications dealing with biogas involve special requirements, which must also be met by the particular compressor technology.
The filtering system also guarantees excellent gas quality, while the suction valves and the constant control of flow rate and pressure eliminate the risk of leakage and ensure the supply of gas according to the demand of the energy system or the capacity of the distribution network.
In addition to these features, high performance, operational reliability over time, energy efficiency and low maintenance costs guaranteed by the vane construction design make Mattei machines the lowest Life Cycle Cost products on the market.
