22kW Industrial Roots Blower & Vacuum Pump – Energy-Saving PMSM + VFD

The SLDS-2200LC is a 22kW energy-saving industrial roots blower and vacuum pump — the most broadly applicable machine in the LC series lineup. It delivers sufficient pressure (20–35 kPa) and vacuum depth (−20 to −35 kPa) to cover most industrial applications, from wastewater aeration to tissue paper converting, in a footprint that fits standard equipment rooms.

The three-lobe rotors — CNC-machined, interlocking without contact, moving a fixed volume of air with every revolution — represent the same positive-displacement principle the Roots brothers invented. What has changed is how the rotors are driven. The LC replaces the fixed-speed induction motor with a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) and variable frequency drive (VFD), cutting electricity consumption by 30 to 65 percent compared to a conventional 22kW industrial Roots blower.

For operations where 22kW is the workhorse power rating — medium wastewater stations, tissue converting workshops with 2–3 folding lines, general industrial processes — the 2200LC sits at the intersection of capability and payback. Enough power to handle real industrial loads. Compact enough to fit through standard doorways. Efficient enough to pay for itself within 18 to 30 months.

Product Positioning: The Industrial Sweet Spot

At 22kW, the 2200LC hits the power rating that a large share of industrial roots blower applications converge on. It delivers 30 m³/min at pressures up to 35 kPa, and pulls vacuum down to −35 kPa — the range that covers everything from aeration basins to tissue folding machines.

Choose the 22kW LC when:

• Your application demands 20–35 kPa pressure or −20 to −35 kPa vacuum
• You’re running 2–3 tissue paper folding machines in a mid-size converting workshop
• Your wastewater station serves a medium-size community or industrial pretreatment line
• You need a general-purpose industrial blower/vacuum pump that can be redeployed as needs change
• You want the energy savings of PMSM + VFD but don’t need the larger frame sizes of the 30–45kW models

Dual-Mode Specifications: Pressure Blower & Vacuum Pump

22kW Energy-saving Industrial Roots Blower & Vacuum Pump

Like every LC series roots blower, the 2200LC uses one three-lobe rotary lobe host for two jobs. Same dual-gearbox host. Same PMSM motor. Same spare parts. Same weekly maintenance routine.

• Connect the discharge port
  Industrial air blower for aeration, pneumatic conveying, and combustion air..
• Connect the inlet port
  Roots vacuum pump for tissue folding machines, vacuum packaging, and small vacuum conveying systems.

💡 Same cabinet, same footprint as the 15kW. The 2200LC shares the 1400×1200×1400 mm cabinet with the 1500LC. The higher power rating comes from the motor, not a larger enclosure — so upgrading from 15kW to 22kW doesn’t require rearranging your equipment room.

Noise Levels

At 70–80 dB, the 2200LC runs 8–13 dB quieter than a conventional 22kW roots blower. The PMSM motor eliminates the characteristic induction-motor hum, and the proprietary 4-chamber resonant silencer reduces airflow noise through destructive interference — splitting the air stream into two paths and routing it through four interconnected chambers where sound wave peaks and troughs cancel. Six-sided acoustic insulation lining the cabinet interior absorbs residual noise across the full frequency spectrum.

For tissue converting workshops where operators work an entire shift within a few meters of the vacuum pump, the noise reduction is a working-conditions improvement as well as a compliance advantage.

What’s Inside

One platform, standard 15–45 kW — custom builds beyond. Like every LC unit, the 2200LC pairs a PMSM motor with a VFD on the same shared drivetrain — the engineering that cuts energy 30–65% across the whole series. For the full breakdown of why this combination works, see our Energy-Saving Roots Blower series overview

The 2200LC is built on the same dual-gearbox three-lobe host used across the LC series — but spec’d for the duty most plants actually run: steady, around-the-clock medium-duty air. It is the model most buyers start with, and the one they redeploy most often as needs change.

Dual-gearbox roots host. Two synchronized gearboxes share torque across their teeth rather than loading a single set. Rated for 18 years of continuous service. Three-lobe rotors are CNC-machined as matched pairs and dynamically balanced before assembly. They never touch each other or the casing wall, so there is no gas-path wear to schedule around.

PMSM motor with 186 Nm torque. Rare-earth permanent magnets, no rotor windings, no resistive rotor heating. At the 22 kW rating — the single most common industrial blower size — it holds above 93% efficiency at partial load, where a conventional induction motor has already dropped to roughly 85%.

Belt-driven through the dual gearbox. The same mechanical layout as our classic SL line. The VFD’s soft-start removes the 6–8× inrush of direct-on-line starting, which is what actually kills belts on smaller electrical installations — so the 2200LC is gentle on the supply it sits on.

Tuned VFD with custom drive curves. Programmed to this model’s full performance map. In pressure mode it holds a target discharge pressure; in vacuum mode it holds target vacuum. Soft start and built-in over-current / phase-loss / surge protection are included.

Proprietary 4-chamber resonant silencer. Split-flow geometry cancels airflow noise by destructive interference; six-sided acoustic lining absorbs the rest. Important where operators work within a few meters of the machine all shift.

Integrated inlet filtration. Front-accessible cartridge. Tool-free swap.

Vibration isolation. High-elasticity silicone pads — no anchor bolts, no grouted foundation. Set it on a level floor, connect the pipes, done.

What You Actually Save

Worked example — municipal wastewater: A 22kW conventional roots blower running 24/7 in a medium-size wastewater treatment plant draws roughly 193,000 kWh per year. At $0.10/kWh: $19,300 annually. Swap for an SLDS-2200LC, and the annual electric bill drops by $5,800 to $12,500 — depending on the diurnal load profile. Payback on the upfront price difference: 18 to 30 months.

Worked example — tissue converting workshop: A 22kW conventional vacuum pump powering 3 napkin folding lines, running 16 hours/day, 300 days/year, consumes roughly 106,000 kWh annually. At $0.12/kWh: $12,700. The SLDS-2200LC in vacuum mode cuts that by 35–55% — saving $4,400 to $7,000 per year. For a tissue workshop where electricity is typically the second-largest operating cost after raw material, those savings change the competitive math.

If your electricity rate is higher — as it is in much of Europe, Southeast Asia, and island nations — payback is faster. If you run multiple units, multiply.

Applications

Tissue Paper Converting

The 22kW LC vacuum pump is the standard fit for a medium-size tissue converting workshop running 2 to 3 folding machines — napkin folders, facial tissue lines, or paper towel converting equipment. In these lines, vacuum does the gripping: each sheet rides a suction belt through the fold geometry. If vacuum wavers for even a fraction of a second at production speed, a sheet slips out of registration, the fold misses, and the line jams — costing minutes to clear and restart.

The 2200LC’s VFD operates in constant-vacuum mode: set your target vacuum level, and the drive adjusts motor speed in real time to hold it. As inlet filters gradually load with paper dust after hours of continuous operation, the vacuum level starts to drift — and the VFD compensates without operator intervention. The line doesn’t stop. The operator doesn’t need to monitor a vacuum gauge and manually adjust a bleed valve.

Typical 22kW tissue setup:

• 2–3 folding machines (napkin, facial tissue, or paper towel)
• Moderate line speeds (150–250 m/min)
• Single vacuum header serving all machines
• 16–20 hours/day operation, 300 days/year

For tissue workshops where the vacuum pump shares floor space with production equipment and operators, the 2200LC’s integrated cabinet and 70–80 dB noise level mean no separate motor base, no external silencer, and manageable shop-floor noise.

Oil-free vacuum is mandatory in tissue converting. Oil mist migrating into the vacuum line contaminates the paper product — visible stains on white napkins or facial tissue are a quality reject and a customer complaint. The 2200LC’s labyrinth-sealed gas path guarantees zero oil carryover. The lubrication system is completely isolated on the gear side, behind seals that are designed to keep oil in and gas clean.

When to move up: If your tissue operation expands to 4+ folding lines, or if you’re running high-speed machines (250+ m/min) that demand deeper vacuum, step up to the 30kW or 37kW models.

Wastewater Treatment

Medium-size municipal wastewater plants and industrial pretreatment systems — the installations that treat 2,000 to 10,000 m³/day — typically run aeration blowers in the 15–30kW range. The 2200LC in pressure mode delivers 30 m³/min at 20–35 kPa, the pressure band that matches fine-bubble diffusers at 3–5 meters submergence depth.

The VFD’s constant-pressure mode addresses a specific wastewater problem: diffuser fouling. As fine-bubble diffusers age — accumulating biofilm, scaling, and solids — the back-pressure required to push air through them gradually rises. A fixed-speed blower responds by drawing more current, wasting energy. The VFD adjusts motor speed to hold target airflow at whatever pressure the diffusers currently require.

For plants running in diurnal flow patterns — low overnight, peak during daytime hours — the VFD’s variable-speed capability allows airflow to track demand. Run at 60% speed at 3 AM when the basin loading is minimal. Ramp to full output during the morning peak. The energy savings accumulate every day, automatically.

General Industrial Applications

The 22kW power class is the workhorse of industrial blower applications beyond water and tissue:

• Pneumatic pressure conveying: Moving cement, flour, grain, or plastic pellets through pipelines at moderate distances. Roots blowers deliver the constant-volume airflow that handles fluctuating material loads without stalling.
• Combustion air: Supplying steady airflow to burners and boilers where air/fuel ratio control depends on consistent supply pressure.
• Central vacuum systems: Multi-point vacuum networks in factories and laboratories, where the VFD adjusts pump speed as different points come on and off line.
• Vacuum packaging: Small to medium food packaging lines where oil-free vacuum is a HACCP requirement.

The 2200LC’s dual-mode capability means one machine type covers both pressure and vacuum needs across different production areas — common spare parts, common maintenance, one supplier.

Maintenance

As the lightest-loaded model in the LC line, the 2200LC asks the least of its components. Weekly: glance at the oil sight glass. Monthly: check belt tension — belts are a wear item on any belt-driven machine, but the VFD’s soft-start removes the current spike that shortens belt life, so re-tensioning is infrequent. As indicated, clean or replace the inlet filter element.

There are no motor bearings to grease — the PMSM is sealed. The wet-sump splash system has no external oil pump, no oil filter to change, no cooling-water ties. The dual gearbox runs splash-lubricated from a shared sump. Every major subsystem — silencer cartridges, filter elements, VFD, controls — is modular and comes out individually when service is eventually needed.

Also Available: Smaller & Larger LC Models

The 2200LC is one of five standard power ratings (15–45 kW), with custom builds beyond this range in the LC series — all sharing the same PMSM motor, VFD platform, and modular cabinet architecture:

• 15kW LC → — Compact entry point for small tissue lines and pond aeration
• 30kW LC → — Higher pressure (up to 40 kPa), deeper vacuum, 4+ tissue machines
• 37kW LC → — Large tissue converting lines, pneumatic conveying
• 45kW LC → — Maximum capacity for large tissue mills and heavy industry

See the LC Series Energy-saving Roots Blower Vacuum Pump → for a side-by-side comparison of all five standard power ratings (15–45 kW), plus custom builds, with selection guidance.

Frequently Asked Questions