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 The Complete MBA Coursework Series

Introduction to Excel

“MY LORD, INCREASE MY KNOWLEDGE” Noble Quran

A Tale of Two Brothers

Hicham and Mohamed Ibnalkadi
Contents
How to contact us
I. ​INTRODUCTION
II. ​VLOOKUP
Exact Match
Vlookup Looks Right
III. ​INDEX MATCH
Match Function
Index
Index and Match
IV. ​INDIRECT FUNCTION
Cell Reference
Range Reference
V. ​PIVOT TABLES
Insert Pivot Table
Two-dimensional Pivot Table
Insert Pivot Chart
VI. ​IFERROR, ISERROR
IfError
IsError
VII. ​ADVANCED FILTER
AND criteria
OR criteria
Formula as Criteria
VIII. ​GOAL SEEK
IX. ​Visual Basic for Applications (VBA)
Enable Developer Option
Program in VBA
X. ​POWER BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE (Power BI)
Power Map
Power Pivot
Power View
XI. ​Reference & Sources
Preface
Motivation
This book is designed as a part of “The Complete MBA Coursework Series”,
established to equip the professionals and students with the eminent
capabilities and hone their skillset. The motivation behind this series is the
need to establish a thorough and complete MBA coursework, following the
core and elective courses of prestigious institutions like Wharton and Harvard’s
Business Schools. With this self-motivated study of the MBA curriculum,
students and professionals can tailor their MBA according to their interests and
need. Thus, embarking on this self-study MBA coursework rather than a
traditional, costly, and lengthy MBA degree program is worth the time.
MBA degree programs are very costly, although the skill boost associated is
worth acquiring. Thus, as a part of the MBA coursework series, the following
book helps the students learn the basic terminologies and techniques
associated with Microsoft Excel Office tool. This book does not attempt to
provide a self-contained discussion of Microsoft Excel. Instead is a decent
introduction to Excel office needed as a skill in top MBA programs. Further, the
introductory is stemmed from our professional experience. Finally, we want to
thank Hina Aslam and Sara Aslam for providing us with many suggestions and
valuable feedback on this book.
Prerequisites
No prerequisite is warranted. The emphasis throughout the book is on the
understanding of basic terminologies and valid application of techniques onto
the real data and problems.
Final few words
Thank you for buying this book, and feedback is highly appreciated for
enhancing future versions. I hope that all readers gain something useful from
this book and boost their knowledge of the tool that the author aimed at while
writing it.
Although this book has been thoroughly checked and proofread, typos, errors,
inconsistencies in notation, and instances where I have got it wrong are bound
to sneak in. Any readers spotting such errors or addressing certain questions
or comments are kindly requested to contact our customer service through
this email ([email protected] ) before writing any review online. Finally,
feel free to return the book and ask for a refund if unsatisfied.
A Tale of Two Brothers
Hicham and Mohamed Ibnalkadi
[email protected]
 1. INTRODUCTION
Microsoft Excel is part of the Microsoft office tools and mainly used to
record and analyze numerical data. An excel file is a collection of columns and
rows that form a table. Further, Alphabetical letters represent columns while
numbers represent rows. Furthermore, a cell is a point where a column and a
row meet. Word documents can include tables and columns, but Excel makes
laying out information easier. Although Excel looks intimidating at first, its
layout is similar to other Microsoft Office applications. Finally, Excel defines
multiple functions for designing formulas that automate calculations.
Cells can contain formulas, which should always start with an equal sign. Excel
depicts the result of an equation in a cell with formula but automatically keeps
that result up-to-date as you change its components.
Excel can make your working life more manageable. Some of the
practical uses of Excel is as follows:

1. Excel has provided many features for easy usage. In Excel, the most
fundamental ability is organizing data . Excel can create a list and
gives the user the freedom to write in whichever cells.
2. To visualize data in a graph format, simply enter a range of data into
Excel, and the program can automatically depict it. Excel provides
multiple " Recommended Charts " that scan through the data and
display the most relevant charts.
3. Excel features include functions that automate math formulas for
multiple purposes, including bookkeeping, accounting, and statistics.
Excel function arsenal includes SUM, adds other cells together, and
has a one-button shortcut: the user selects a group of cells and
press "Alt-Equals" to fill in the sum . Some functions analyze
cells' contents and can even work with text. Calculate With Complex
Formulas
4. Complex calculations include the string of multi-part formulas .
Almost any set of functions can work together. For example, the user
can add a column of cells and then round it to the nearest hundred
by combining SUM with ROUND: =ROUND(SUM(A1: A5), -2) turns
the sum of cells A1 through A5 to two places left of the decimal,
resulting in around hundreds place.
The succeeding chapters will discuss some of the most popular functions
in Excel.
 2. VLOOKUP
The VLOOKUP function performs a vertical lookup by searching for a
value in the first column of a table to return the value in the same row in the
index number position. The VLOOKUP function is built-in in Microsoft Excel
and classified as a Lookup/Reference Function.
Exact Match
The user searches for an exact match of the value.

1. The VLOOKUP function below searches the value 12045 (first argument)
in the leftmost column of the red table (second argument).

2. The third argument (4) in the VLOOKUP requests the function to

return the value in the same row from the fourth column (Grade) of
the range B3:E7 (result is 90).
 Note: in contrast, the Boolean FALSE (the fourth argument) requests the
VLOOKUP function to return an exact match of the value . in case the
VLOOKUP function cannot find the value 12045 in the first column, #N/A error
is returned.

Vlookup Looks Right

The VLOOKUP function retrieves a value in the first column of a table starting
from the left and returns the value from a column to the right.

1. The following VLOOKUP function cheks the First Name and returns the
Last Name.
 2. For instance, if the user changes the third argument to 3, the VLOOKUP
function looks up the first name and returns the Grade.

In this example, the VLOOKUP function unable to search the first name
and return the ID. The VLOOKUP function can not look to the left of the given
range.
 3. INDEX MATCH
INDEX MATCH is an older brother of the much-used VLOOKUP; it allows
you to lookup values in a table based on other rows and columns. Moreover,
unlike VLOOKUP, it can be used on rows, columns, or both simultaneously.
INDEX MATCH is a better substitute to VLOOKUP entirely, and it is one
of Excel's most powerful features.
Match Function
The MATCH function retrieves the position of a value in a given range. For
instance, the MATCH function below looks up the value 12045 in the range
B3:B7.
 The first argument, 12045, is found at position 3. For an exact match,
the third argument is set to 0.
Index
The INDEX function below returns a specific value in a one-dimensional
range. It takes a cell range and returns a cell within that range based on a
count provided by the user.

The INDEX function returns the 3rd value (3 in the second argument of
the function) in the range E3: E7 (first argument).
Index and Match
Replace the value 3 in the INDEX function (see the previous example) with the
MATCH function (see the first example) to look up the salary of ID 12045.

The MATCH function returns position three, and the INDEX function
needs position 3. It is a perfect combination. Another alternative for this is the
VLOOKUP function, but Index Match is better to use because you don't have to
count. You can safely insert columns. You can lookup backward and have
separate formulas.
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
Fig. 18.—Modern.
 Fig. 19.—Typical Grain-Handling Plant; 50 Tons per hour.

B is a length of flexible pipe to enable the nozzle to sweep the

width of the barge, the length being dealt with by moving the boat to
within the radius of the swivel arm E.
C is a permanent pipe carried on the jib arm which is mounted on
a swivel joint; B is another short flexible pipe to permit of the
swivelling already mentioned.
F indicates the receiver into which the grain is deposited, and G
the special rotary valves, for releasing the material from the system
without interfering with the vacuum of the conveying line.
H illustrates the twin air filters which are provided with valves, so
that each of the filters can be isolated in turn from the rest of the
plant for cleaning of the fabric tubes, without interrupting the
continuous working of the plant.
 J indicates the connecting pipes between the receiver, air filters,
and pump, and it should be noted they are considerably larger than
those on the suction end C, this being necessary to allow for the
expansion of the air under vacuum.
K is the reciprocating air pump, driven electrically by the motor M
through large helical gear wheels, which act as flywheels and are
helpful in equalizing the torque required by the pump.
L is the outlet pipe for the air as it is exhausted from and by the
pump.

Fig. 20.—Floating Pneumatic Transport Plant; 200-250 Tons

per hour.
 Fig. 21.—Portable Pneumatic Plant on Railway Truck.

This plant is simple, but every possible modification can be added

that circumstances make desirable; such as discharging on to a belt
conveyor, for feeding the silos or other storage bins.
Where grain is bought by bulk it would be necessary to check the
weight, and in this case an automatic weigher would be installed,
into which the material would be discharged from the receiver. With a
bag filter the collected dust can also be weighed, the total weight
being then obtained by addition.
Typical Floating Plant. The most popular development of the
above type of plant is the floating plant, designed for erection on a
hulk, or barge, and intended to suck grain from an ocean-going
steamer and discharge it into barges or lighters on the other side of
the discharging plant, as indicated in Fig. 20. The plant shown is one
of many in actual operation and its construction may be followed by
reference to the description of the plant shown in Fig. 19, the same
index letters being used in each case. One great advantage of
floating plants is that the difference in height due to tides is of no
consequence.
Portable Plants. Still another modification consists of a complete
quay-side plant mounted like a travelling crane, so that it can be
moved longitudinally along steel rails on the quay-side. This plant is
particularly useful where large cargo ships have to be emptied and
then allowed to remain at their berth until reloaded with another
cargo.

Fig. 22.—Portable Railway Plant in Operation.

Complete plants have also been mounted on railway trucks, the

engine and pump in this case being on a second waggon (see Figs.
21, 22). In such a case the plant has to be mounted very low, and it
is necessary to lift from the under-side of the truck to, say, a railway
waggon, by means of an adjustable belt or bucket elevator (shown at
the extreme left of Fig. 21).
Many other applications will suggest themselves to the reader, and
sufficient has been said to prove that for the handling of wheat the
pneumatic system is distinctly flexible and convenient; also, it effects
a great saving in labour, which is an important consideration
nowadays. “Bushelling,” conveying, and weighing by hand used to
cost well over a shilling per ton, which figure was reduced to just
over 1½d. per ton by pneumatic conveying; these are pre-war costs
in both instances, but the relative saving effected by pneumatic
conveying is certainly not less under present conditions.
All the previous remarks also apply to linseed and cotton seed in
bulk, maize, oats, and in fact all cereals. Such materials have to be
accepted as and when the ships arrive irrespective of convenience,
and it is an important advantage of pneumatic conveying that the
material can be lifted and discharged in the most convenient
position; also, when the barge or ship has departed the same
apparatus can be utilized to lift the material from its position in store
to the cleaning or grinding plant.
 CHAPTER V
PNEUMATIC COAL-HANDLING PLANTS

The writer was directly interested in the erection and installing of one
of the first plants installed in this country for the elevation and
conveying of coal, and a description of the various details may give a
good idea of a complete plant, handling coal on a commercial scale.
The conditions to be complied with are as follows: 20 tons of
“slack” per hour, to be raised 90 ft. above canal level or 80 ft. above
road level.
The coal is brought alongside the power-house by canal barges of
25 tons capacity, or by tipping steam waggons from the railway
sidings, a distance of one mile away. In both cases the coal is
required to be elevated into overhead bunkers of 600 tons capacity
placed vertically over the boilers.
Fig. 23.—Pneumatic Unloading of Coal at Messrs. Boots, Ltd.
(Nottingham).

In the first case, immediately the barge is alongside, the flexible

suction pipe is lowered into the barge (Fig. 23), and coal immediately
begins to rise in the pipe and is discharged as required. Little or no
handling of the coal is required after the suction nozzle has once
reached the bottom of the barge; all that it is necessary to do is to
bring the barge gradually up to the nozzle, the coal then
“avalanching” down to the nozzle. Fig. 24 shows the discharger
placed on girders over the bunkers into which it discharges
continuously. The coal enters at A and the major portion of the fuel is
discharged through the rotary valves B.
The coal discharger itself consists of a cast iron vessel with two
King’s patent rotating valves. These are designed in the form of a
slightly conical taper divided into four sections, one portion of the
circular valve being under vacuum, and the other under ordinary
atmospheric pressure. The outlet of the valves is larger than the inlet
to allow the coal which is in the valve to drop out easily. Over each
valve is also provided a four-armed sweeper to prevent any damp
coal from forming a cone inside. The discharger is provided with two
inlets with full-way bored valves, so that the coal can be drawn either
from the water side or from the land side at will. After the coal has
been deposited in the main discharger, there is provided a
supplementary discharger consisting of a vessel 6 ft. high by 30 ins.
diameter, with two inlet pipes of 8 ins. diameter, to provide a contra-
flow, so that any particles of coal dust in the air will meet one another
in the 30 ins. box at equal velocity and be deposited. The small
particles are delivered by a supplementary rotary discharge valve
which is set to run very much slower than the main discharger
valves.
 Fig. 24.—Discharger for Coal Conveying Plant.

The main discharger valves are driven by worm gearing, the latter
having one right-hand thread and one left-hand thread, so that the
end thrust on the worms is neutralized. Ball bearings are provided
and the small motor which drives all three valves is coupled up with
an electrical device designed by the author. This device ensures that
if anything happens to the top discharge valves—so that the 3 h.p.
motor driving them cuts out, owing to an overload or other cause—
then the main motor also is cut out by the opening of its circuit
breaker. This prevents any “flooding” of the pipes and dischargers.
It may be mentioned that the valves are so designed that a portion
of the weight of each valve is carried by the vacuum, so that the
vertical wearing lift on the valves when at work is very slight.
The intake pipes for the coal are 5 ins. diameter, and they are
provided with heavy cast iron bends, having extra thick metal on the
outside radius to allow for the wearing effect of coal passing at the
rate of 20 tons per hour.
The pipe into the barge is provided with a flexible steel pipe at the
suction nozzle end, for convenience of handling. India-rubber piping
has been tried, but the extra cost does not justify its continued use.
The nozzle is made as light as possible for convenience of
handling, and is fitted with a special “free air” inlet for the regulation
of the amount of air necessary to blend with the coal.
Ash Handling. In addition to unloading coal, the above plant is
capable of dealing with hot ashes which are first crushed in a
portable clinker breaker, electrically driven, which runs under all the
ash hoppers of the boilers. The ash when crushed gravitates into
funnel-topped tee-pieces, inserted in the main ash-conveying pipe,
whence it is immediately sucked up into an overhead ash hopper to
await the convenience of the waggons which dispose of it on the
“tips.”
Flue Cleaning. A 3 in. suction pipe has been run round the boiler-
house in such positions that flexible hose can be attached for flue
cleaning purposes. In this case the cleaners simply use an enlarged
nozzle such as is supplied with a domestic equipment and the dust is
removed from the flues, economizer soot chambers, etc., into the
ash hopper without trouble or dust.
The success of this plant is best indicated by the fact that, at the
moment of writing, a duplicate plant is being erected. Owing to the
growth of the business, and its demand for power and steam, the
original plant has to be worked continuously on coal, so that the ash
and flue dust problem has become acute again.
Portable Floating Plant. A third plant ordered by the same firm is
of considerable interest. This is intended to be mounted in a barge
so as to be portable. Owing to lack of space in close proximity to the
power-house, considerable difficulty is found in keeping adequate
stocks of coal on the site except the 600 tons in the overhead
bunkers. In order to secure continuity of working, it is essential that
as much fuel as possible be stored, and for this purpose a coal pile
has been made about half a mile away from the works, adjoining the
canal. Ashes can be disposed of on certain fields a few miles outside
the city in swamps and pools caused by subsidences, due to colliery
workings.
The portable plant is therefore arranged to operate as follows: the
barge is self-propelled by a 30 h.p. paraffin engine which can be
coupled by clutches to either the propeller or a Roots blower, the
latter being the exhauster for the portable suction plant.
The barge is loaded with ashes for disposal, and then proceeds
under its own power to the site where they are to be dumped. The
clutch is operated disconnecting the propeller and operating the
blower. The suction side of the blower is coupled up with the pipe
line in the boat and the barge feeds the plant by means of the
flexible hose: the discharge pipe is raised over the towing path so as
not to interfere with passing traffic, and the ashes are blown out into
the swamps previously mentioned. It will readily be recognized how
simple this unloading becomes compared with trying to dig out the
ashes with either a spade or a fork.
 The empty barge then returns to the coal pile and takes up a load
of coal in a similar manner, then proceeding to the power-house
under its own power and being unloaded by the original fixed
pneumatic installation in the ordinary way.
The coal arriving by road is tipped into a concrete hopper
excavated below the ground level, and so designed with sloping
sides that it is self feeding into a suction pipe connected to the
bottom of the hopper. The same procedure occurs except that in this
case the coal enters the main discharger at the top (E, Fig. 24).
It is interesting to note that the very fine dust collected from the air
filter is eagerly sought after by the foundry trade, and what would at
first appear to be a waste product impossible to burn, is actually a
valuable by-product of the plant.
 CHAPTER VI
THE INDUCTION CONVEYOR

Numerous means have been devised to cause the necessary current

of air to flow along the conveyor pipe, but the ideal method is
probably yet to seek. Probably the most satisfactory and economical
system, until recently, was the positive pump exhausting a vacuum
chamber; the latter receiving the material, and discharging it into the
receptacle provided for that purpose.
The difficulties arising in practice, however, incited the inventive
genius of engineers responsible for the operation of these plants,
and a number of attempts were made to induce an air current by
other means.
Ejector Systems. Steam ejectors were fitted to the closed tank
provided for the reception of the material, thus converting the tank
into a vacuum chamber, and eliminating the discharger. In other
cases injectors, also operated by steam, were placed at intervals
along the conveyor pipe, usually at such convenient points as 90°
bends, and the slight vacuum created by the condensation of the
steam and also by the velocity of the jet, induced an air current
which swept the material along with it into the receiver chamber.
Although both these methods are in practical use, their
applications are strictly limited to materials which do not suffer by
contact with heat and moisture; the methods are therefore used
principally for conveying ashes and soot from boiler furnaces and
flues. Ashes formed by the combustion of coal contain large
amounts of abrasive matter, and it is very important that all this
matter should be extracted from the air, before entering the
exhauster of the suction system. The steam jet cuts out the
exhauster entirely, but absorbs an excessive amount of power in the
form of steam. It has the advantage, however, of quenching the
ashes on their way to the settling tank. For flue dust, however, the
steam jet is unsuitable, as the condensed vapour causes the
material to cake in the pipes, and the latter rapidly become choked,
involving considerable delay and trouble in cleaning out. The ejector
system is used for this material, the tank being of the closed type,
and the necessary vacuum being created by a steam ejector fixed in
a branch at the side near the top, the dust striking a baffle and falling
by gravity to the bottom of the tank. A special air-tight gate or valve is
opened to empty the tank.
Air Induction. The cardinal feature of the induction system is the
ease with which materials may be handled which cannot be
conveyed by the suction method.
Sand, sugar, salt, soda ash, and many other substances of a
granular nature, which are very troublesome when conveyed by the
suction method, may be dealt with economically by the induction
system and, although the latter is only in its experimental stages at
the moment of writing, it is possible that it may displace all other
systems in the near future.
The induction system differs from the suction system in that the air
flow along the pipe is induced by a jet of air, at very high velocity,
fixed at any convenient distance from the intake nozzle of the
conveyor pipe, and the material conveyed is discharged either from
an open end into an open container, or by some form of cyclone. The
closed discharger or container, with its baffles and rotary valves or
air locks, is eliminated, and the substance to be handled has a free
and unrestricted flow throughout the length of the pipe.
Advantages of the Induction System. The advantages of the
induction conveyor may be summarized as follows: (1) Low first cost,
the power unit being the only expensive item. (2) Low maintenance
cost, there being no moving parts and little wear. (3) Low labour cost,
practically no attendance being required. (4) Flexibility and ease of
handling. (5) High efficiency of power unit and reliability of system.
(6) Ability to handle materials which are easily damaged.
In the case of a suction plant handling grain or coal, the intake end
of the conveyor is fairly flexible, and the nozzle may be operated
over a fairly large radius, say, all over the floor of a vessel’s hold.
The discharge end, however, is fixed, unless a cumbersome and
expensive gantry is provided to permit of the discharge apparatus
being moved about. Even should the discharger be mounted on rails,
the area over which it can operate is limited by the rails on which it
runs. With a large plant, this would mean that a number of
dischargers would be required to lift from a ship into a warehouse or
store, from the latter into bunkers or silos, or perhaps into trucks or
waggons. Each discharger would require a separate exhauster and a
separate intake, and valuable space would be occupied by the plant
and expense incurred for machinery which would not be in use for a
considerable part of the time.
The induction system, however, is flexible at both intake and
discharge ends of the pipe. It is only necessary to lower the nozzle
into the material to be removed, and to place the delivery pipe over
the receptacle for the material, and to turn on the air jet. The delivery
may be handled easily while working, and the material distributed
where required; or suitable valves and branches may be fixed, and a
number of discharge pipes used in turn to deliver into different bins
or into various floors.
The source of power for the operation of the induction conveyor is
the air compressor. As every operating engineer is well aware, all
machinery is kept in better condition and runs more economically,
when it is housed in proper environment and receives skilled
attention. The compressor, in this case, need not be erected near the
work, but may be placed some distance away, preferably in the
power station, as the pipe line connecting the conveyor with the
machine will have a very small bore, compared with the air pipe to
the exhauster on a suction plant, and will also be inexpensive to
erect and maintain. In the instance quoted above, where a number of
suction and delivery points are required, only these small pipes need
be run from a common main, and turned on and off as needed, the
compressor running continuously at or near its most economical
load.
Construction of Induction Plant. The induction conveyor may be
said to be a compromise between the suction and blowing methods.
The air jet is fixed in the conveyor pipe at a suitable angle, some
distance above the intake nozzle, and a stream of air at high velocity
is passed along the pipe in the direction of the discharge. This air jet
is designed carefully for the duty it has to perform, and its discharge
entrains the free air in the pipe, causing it to move in the required
direction. A partial vacuum is created in the conveyor pipe, behind
the jet, and free air rushes in at the intake, carrying the material
along with it.
In order to effect the greatest economy in the operation of this
plant, it is important that the power unit should be carefully chosen,
and that the pipe system should be designed to give the full pressure
at the jet. With modern multiple-stage compressors of the rotary or
reciprocating type, working at about full load, very high efficiencies
can be obtained, and the pressure pipe line should be arranged to
avoid loss by friction as far as possible. The receiver should be of
sufficient capacity to absorb any pulsations, and to throw down oil
and moisture before the air enters the pipes. A separator of good
design should also be incorporated.
In designing the conveyor pipe line, bends should be avoided
when possible, by erecting the lifting pipes at an angle with the
horizontal. It is not sufficiently well appreciated that bends and
angles rapidly increase the frictional resistance to the flow of the
conveying medium, and mean loss of power; in fact there is no doubt
that the difference between success and failure in pneumatic
conveying is largely a matter of design. Many substances which are
otherwise quite suitable for handling in this manner are very fragile,
and any friction on pipe walls or contact with metal baffles at high
velocity, so reduces or pulverizes them that their value is reduced
considerably. In the case of ashes from boiler furnaces, this effect is
advantageous rather than otherwise, but when dealing with coal it is
necessary to arrange the system so that the minimum amount of
damage is done to the material. Some coals, such as Derbyshire
bituminous, is not easily broken or abraded, and can be lifted very
satisfactorily by the usual suction method. Welsh coal, on the other
hand, is very friable, and if conveyed into the usual discharger, will
emerge in a finely divided state, even though it may be fed to the
intake in large pieces. For handling such materials, the induction
method is most suitable, as the discharge end may be arranged so
that the material is not delivered at high velocity, and does not strike
any obstacle which would reduce it or break it up. It is possible to
elevate potatoes and even oranges by the induction process, and it
is quite within the bounds of probability that eggs may be delivered in
this manner, without more than the usual percentage of breakages.
In conveying many materials, which are conveyed whilst hot, it is
better if they can be kept at practically the same temperature at the
delivery as when they enter the pipe. This is provided for by heating
the air to a suitable temperature just before it enters the jet.
This is also an additional source of economy in operation. As is
well known, air, like all other gases, increases in volume with the
temperature, and if the heat lost by the air cooling after compression
be replaced at the jet, considerably more power is obtained. If the
compressor is situated in such a position that most of the heat of
compression is delivered at the jet, there is little to be gained by
reheating. In most cases, however, the air has returned to normal
temperature by the time it reaches the point where it is to be used,
and, if a suitable air heater is installed at this point, the volume may
be increased greatly by a comparatively small expenditure.
A heater consisting of tubes through which the air passes, these
tubes surrounded by water under high steam pressures, offers the
most convenient and satisfactory method of heating the air. The air
pipes between the heater and conveyor pipe should be lagged in
order to retain the heat.
The pressure of the air may be increased by 50 per cent. by
heating to the temperature of steam at 200 lbs. per sq. in. gauge
pressure, while the cost will be comparatively small. Theoretically, a
gain of about 40 per cent. in economy should be obtained, and the
practical results should be reasonably close to this figure.
Air Receivers. It is a decided advantage in practice to install an
efficient separator between the ordinary receiver of the compressor
and the pipe line, as large quantities of moisture will travel over with
the air, and will be condensed directly they meet some cooler
surface. The ordinary receiver is supposed to fulfil this function, but it
does not do so because it is, in effect, an enlargement of the pipe
line, and, being filled with hot air under pressure, has no tendency to
condense the moisture. The latter does not begin to cool to any
extent until it reaches the small diameter pipes, with the
consequence that these pipes contain quantities of oil and water
which eventually reach the jet, and are blown into the material
handled.
Where compressors of the rotary or turbine type are installed,
there will be only water in expansion, but it is good practice to
remove this, even though the air be re-heated, because the moisture
will recondense in the conveyor pipe, and tend to choke the latter
when small grained substances are being conveyed.
Types of Compressors. Reference has already been made to the
power unit, and it is hardly within the scope of this work to describe
in detail the various machines available. As, however, the economy
of air conveying depends in a large measure on the cost of power, it
is evident that the compressor should be of the most suitable type for
the duty to be performed.
For small installations, single-stage reciprocating machines, driven
directly by steam engines or by electric motors are, no doubt, the
most suitable. In the case of large plants, using the air continuously
in a number of air jets, where the load factor is high, it is certainly
more important to install a two or three-stage compressor, owing to
the greater economy of working. The larger capital expenditure will
be compensated by the considerable saving of energy. As compared
with single-stage compression to 100 lbs. gauge pressure, a saving
of 20 per cent. can be effected by three-stage working, and with a
constant load of from 75 per cent. to 100 per cent. of full load, a
turbine or electrically driven rotary multiple-stage compressor is
decidedly the best type to adopt.
In plants where exhaust steam can be used to advantage, as in
large generating stations, a steam turbo-compressor, multiple-stage,
exhausting to a feed water heater will show great economy, and the
operating costs of a large plant of this type are very low compared
with any other form of conveyor. This will be obvious when it is
pointed out that maintenance costs on the conveyor are confined to
renewals of bends and junctions in the pipe lines, and of flexible
hose. There are no discharge valves or air locks to be kept vacuum
tight, no filter strainers or sleeves to renew, and the power unit is not
subjected to undue wear through extraneous matter entering the
cylinders and scoring the walls or wearing the valves.
Compared with other forms of mechanical conveying, the
pneumatic induction system is very low in maintenance costs, while
the serious charges incurred in employing human labour are reduced
to a minimum.