Air pressure quadrupler? For real?

[atgcpaul]

We have a piece of equipment at our lab that requires air pressure higher than
120psi (130psi). We use compressed nitrogen tanks but the company that sells
the instrument also sells an "Air pressure quadrupler" that can connect to a
standard air compressor and boost the pressure 4-fold. They want $1600.
They have no other info about it and was wondering if anyone of you knew how
you could increase the outgoing air pressure from a compressor? In the biotech
industry, the upcharge on most products is usually 2x or more so I think $1600
is pretty outrageous.

Thanks, Paul

[momo44]

Paul,

They are likely referring to a pressure booster. They are very common and range from 2:1 boost to over 5:1 boost. They typically use compressed air to boost the pressure, so if you need 5:1 boost, then you lose >80% of your air volume. They are good for very low flow rates, and flow rate is depentant on boost pressure. SMC is a mfg of 2:1 boosters. (www.smcworld.com) Ingersoll Rand also has these. Here is a link to a brochure.
https://www.air.ingersoll-rand.com/s...323621_ENG.pdf

Regards,

Maury

[atgcpaul]

Thanks Maury!