How air density affects vacuum pump performance
Perhaps you use a vacuum pump to power process equipment, such as a pneumatic conveyor. If so, then you should be aware that air density -- the number of air molecules per volume of air -- affects the vacuum level your pump can generate. But what factors influence air density? And how can you select a vacuum pump that performs well in the air density at your site?
To answer these questions, this article first explains how a vacuum pump works and then discusses how two factors -- atmospheric pressure and temperature -- affect air density and, in turn, vacuum pump performance.