World’s smallest high-pressure clean air compressor

Edinburgh-based manufacturer Vert Rotors has adapted a tiny air compressor that was first developed for space travel has been for commercial applications on Earth. The VERT.04.W compressor – which is barely bigger than the face of a wristwatch – is claimed to be the world’s smallest high-pressure and low-vibration clean air compressor.

The VERT.04 technology first was unveiled as a prototype satellite cooling system for the Ministry of Defence’s Centre for Defence Enterprise, which aims to improve the quality of infrared imaging. The new version is a low-noise, low-vibration desktop compressor that uses water injection instead of machine oil, eliminating the risk of contamination. It produces clean air compressed to 115psi, nearly four times higher than the current generation of industry-standard small compressors.

“Innovation in compressor design is glacially slow – our device is the first new design in the last 30 years to come to market,” said Olly Dmitriev, CEO at Vert Rotors. “As for micro compressors, the current design was developed almost 100 years ago, no wonder they cannot achieve low vibration when working at high pressure.

Oil is the most-efficient lubricant to make sure compressors operate at maximum efficiency, but oil particles can contaminate the air being produced. Water is the natural alternative, but the current generation of water-injected compressors that are small enough for medical applications struggle to operate efficiently or produce the high pressure that’s needed.

Dmitriev continued: “Our compressor solves this problem by using a conical screw design, with the male rotor revolving inside the female rotor, making them the only miniature screw compressor that reaches high efficiency.”