Air pumps are machines that move air at moderate to high pressures. There are many contexts in which the use of a vacuum pump is necessary. In semiconductor fabrication, medical technology, instrumentation design, dentistry and in many other hi-tech and low-tech applications, there is a need for low-pressure conditions.
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The main difference between air pumps and fans is that air pumps function by forcing air or other gasses into or out of something, while fans move air or other gasses through a space or between spaces at lower pressure. For example, an air pump would never be used to ventilate an office or a warehouse; a large fan or blower would be required to circulate air effectively. Conversely, a simple industrial fan would never be appropriate for creating a vacuum in an enclosure, as it could not efficiently generate the suction needed to remove all of the air from the enclosure. In the case of industrial vacuum pumps, an air pump is the means by which air or other gasses are evacuated from an enclosure. The study of electrical conductivity of a gas, for example, is much more effective when air, which is a combination of several gasses, can be removed. The gas to be studied can then be directed into the enclosure and studied.
Air pumps are used in applications outside of the creation of vacuums. They are used to aerate water in fish tanks, they are widely used in the automotive maintenance industry for filling tires and cleaning engine parts, they are used to generate compression for use in pneumatic tools and they can even be used in some musical instruments like organs. In the case of vacuum systems, though, an air pump must be specially designed to remove atmosphere from an enclosure and prevent that atmosphere from returning to the enclosure. For this reason, an air pump must feature one or more fans, intake and outlet pipes, seals and a power source sufficient to help overcome the natural tendency of differing air pressures to equalize themselves. Depending on the size of the enclosure, the completeness of the vacuum to be created and other factors relating to performance, a given air pump's construction can range from a single, small fan in an enclosure of moderate strength to many fans in thick, steel or other strong metal enclosure.
