Atlas Copco Compressors is first to offer PET bottle blowers 100% oil-free air

Testing for the ISO 8573-1 Class 0 certification was carried out using the most stringent test methods available, simulating realistic industrial environments. At all test conditions, no traces of oil could be detected and the compressed air was certified to be in the category 'Class 0' in terms of oil content. Atlas Copco is now the only compressor manufacturer to have all of its oil-free air compressors certified ‘Class 0’. The Atlas Copco ZD remains the most energy-efficient and silent 40 bar compressor available, whilst maintaining the flexibility and reliability required by the high-volume PET blowing market.

The importance of 100% oil-free air

Oil contamination is an invisible enemy in all bottling installations and aseptic environments. Many bottlers take extra steps toward purity with decontamination after blow moulding of the preforms. Even the slightest traces of oil can result in altered or toxic product batches and health hazards for the consumers, recalls and reputation damage, as well as production downtime and cleanup. Atlas Copco's 40-bar ZD compressor eliminates the risks of oil contamination by virtue of the design itself.

Testing of the Atlas Copco ZD compressor was carried out by the renowned independent Technische Überwachungs-Verein (German Technical Monitoring Association, or ‘TÜV’), using the most stringent test methods available. All possible forms of oil contamination as liquids, aerosols and vapors, were measured at three different temperatures (20°C, 40°C and 50°C) and at different pressures (25, 30 and 40 bar(e)) at the measurement point. No traces of oil were found in the output air stream.

The ZD 40-bar compressor is the latest of Atlas Copco's oil-free technologies to obtain the ISO 8573-1 CLASS 0 certification with regard to air oil content. The first manufacturer to obtain the Class 0 certification for its Z series of oil-free rotary screw compressors in 2006, Atlas Copco quickly confirmed its leadership with the certification of other oil-free technologies: the centrifugal, tooth, scroll, piston and water-injected screw. Together these span the pressure range from 300 mbar to 40 bar and up to 26000 m³/h. This last certification highlights Atlas Copco's ongoing commitment to the purity of air and the quality of its customers’ production.