Vacuum and AGSS
Rotary vane vacuum pump
A rotary vane vacuum pump is, in the terms used by the US DOE and EPA, a vane-type rotary positive displacement pump that takes in gas below atmospheric pressure and discharges it at atmospheric pressure or slightly higher; Portugal's ACSS ET 03/2006 (v.2024) requires medical vacuum to be produced by rotary vane pumps.
The US Department of Energy compressed air sourcebook (third edition) lists sliding-vane machines among the less common rotary compressors, defines positive displacement compressors as machines that confine successive volumes of gas in a closed space and mechanically reduce that space, and defines vacuum pumps as compressors with an intake below atmospheric pressure. The US EPA WaterSense at Work guide (October 2012) names vane pumps among the positive displacement pumps that do not use water to generate the vacuum seal.
The ULTRAVAC datasheet lists oil-lubricated vane pumps (OLP) and dry-running vane pumps (DRP) among the standard pump technologies of ULTRAVAC medical vacuum systems; it says the vacuum pumps used have solid aluminium alloy blades and that plant maintenance is limited to replacing oil, oil separators and bacterial filter elements. HTM 02-01 (2026), the NHS England guidance, asks for the exhaust termination to be clear of windows, ventilation intakes and compressor intakes, since the exhaust of oil-lubricated pumps is likely to be polluted with oil fumes (10.28).
ACSS ET 03/2006 (v.2024) asks for three automatically operating rotary vane pumps, each sized for 100% of the nominal flow. In industry, Ultra Controlo distributes and services Elmo Rietschle vacuum pumps, and its Industrial 2026 catalogue lists rotary-vane vacuum pumps in dry or lubricated versions.
Sources
- US Department of Energy and Compressed Air Challenge, Improving Compressed Air System Performance: A Sourcebook for Industry, third edition (DOE/EE-1340), rotary compressors and glossary
- US EPA, WaterSense at Work: Best Management Practices for Commercial and Institutional Facilities, Section 7.3 Vacuum Pumps (October 2012)
- ULTRAVAC datasheet, pp. 2 and 4
- NHS England, HTM 02-01 (2026) Part A, paragraph 10.28
- ACSS ET 03/2006 v.2024, section 4.8 (medical vacuum)
- Ultra Controlo, Industrial 2026 catalogue, p. 11
- Ultra Controlo, Medical gas answers: Does Ultra Controlo supply industry as well as hospitals?
Ultra Controlo figures come from its technical datasheets. Third-party facts were read at the source on the date shown.