There are many applications that work with powdered or extremely viscous products which have no lubricant properties to permit the mechanical seal contact surfaces to function without immediately becoming worn.  Finding a sealing element that guarantees sealing without leaks and adds durability to applications of this type poses a difficult challenge.  Braided packing is often used, which gives rise to the disadvantages of this kind of element, such as inevitable leakage to a greater or lesser extent, the use of elements prone to wear such as sleeves to protect the shaft, frequent maintenance to replace the sleeves and change…

  Our knowledge and experience in mounting mechanical seals has enabled us to go one step further by being able to repair and improve the behaviour of pumps. At our facilities in Tarragona, we analyse pumping equipment behaviour and failures, and determine the most appropriate type of mechanical seal.     The main problems we usually find in the pumps we have to repair are: Leaks: they are the cause of half the problems we encounter that require improvement, according to statistics. In the case of aggressive chemicals, these leaks may pose a danger to people and to the environment….

Rotary seals are systems that are used to seal unions between fixed and rotating elements.     They basically consist of a connection guide element, a graphite bearing or bushing and a mechanical seal to seal the union. There are rotary seals for water, steam, oil and many other applications.     They usually function by letting the fluid to be sealed pass through the rotary connection, which is known as a one-way rotary seal. There are also seals that permit the fluids to pass through in both directions, without the incoming fluid being mixed with the outgoing fluid. This…

  The food concentrates industry is one of the most powerful sectors in Southern Europe. There are many plants dedicated to manufacturing concentrated products such as tomato, citrus fruit, milk, sweets, alcoholic beverages and aromatic essences, among others. The concentrate production process consists basically of eliminate the water presence in the raw material to obtain a product with extremely intense properties. At the same time, their volume and weight are reduced by more than 90%, which facilitates their transportation and storage. What is more, concentrated products can be stored for long periods of time without spoiling and without their properties…

As we already saw in previous blog entries, agitators/reactors are a very special type of machine that is usually involved in the main processes of many facilities. This type of system requires mechanical seals that provide the highest level of service. In some cases, apart from the usual requirements for agitators to be able to operate in dry conditions, at high temperatures and with axial/tangential force, there are other, more demanding requirements such as being in contact with extremely aggressive chemicals or abrasive substances. The agitators that operate under these conditions usually have enamel-coated interiors and they are known as…

Agitators are of the most common industrial systems. They can be used in practically any sector, with the chemical and food industries being those in which this type of machinery is used most. There are many agitator/mixer designs with a greater or lesser degree of complexity, but they all have a common basic concept; they are used in tanks or similar devices into which different substances are poured and stirred using a rotating paddle system to mix them. Reactions usually occur between the added products, and for this reason these mixtures/reactions must remain under controlled pressure and/or temperature conditions. Again,…

As already seen in the previous blog entry, in an agitator/reactor, it is very likely that a cartridge seal will operate under dry conditions, as the fluid/product is at the bottom of the system and hardly enters into contact with the seal. In such conditions, it is essential to use a lubricant other than the product fluid. The LDC40 cartridge seal is a double seal that facilitates the use of a secondary fluid (barrier fluid) to lubricate the seal. Another benefit of using a secondary fluid is that the maximum linear operating speed of the seal is higher than that…

There is a great variety of brands and models of pumps that, due to their design and structure, allow the assembly of different types of seals and other sealing systems like packing. There is a tendency, in such cases, to adapt the pump so a mechanical seal or a cartridge can be used without it being necessary to make major modifications to the housing. Nevertheless, some of these brands, due to their special structure, which is specifically designed to work in particular applications, use special designs of mechanical seals made to fit in the housing of these pumps. This type…

To manufacture the paper used in high-quality prints like magazines, catalogs, etc., a special treatment called stucco is required. This process consists of adding one or more layers, based on the quality, of a special mixture of Calcium Carbide (70%), Latex (20-30%) and other substances like starch and NaOH, to the finished paper. This mixture is transformed into a viscous and adhesive substance that must be applied in very specific concentrations and dry in short spans of time, so that the paper does not stick when winded and forms a solid cylinder of unusable material. The properties of this substance, added…

Le magazine Eureka Flash Info consacre un article à Lidering dans son numéro spécial pompes (nº91). Eureka Industries, fondée en 1988 est leader en formation technique. Cet organisme forme des équipes spécialisées dans les process industriels des secteurs de l’eau, l’environnement, la chimie, l’alimentation, la pharmacie et l’énergie. En 1991, cette entreprise familiale décide de lancer un magazine technique sur le thème des équipements pour les fluides liquides et gazeux. Avec aujourd’hui près de 40000 lecteurs tous ingénieurs ou techniciens dans des industries de process ou dans les secteurs eau énergie, ce magazine est devenu incontournable : il tient les professionnels informés…