Hydropower has been used for thousands of years and represents the largest, most efficient and proven renewable energy source on the planet. The rehabilitation and repowering of existing generation stations, as well as developing generation at non powered dams, and introducing pump storage strategies provide a multitude of opportunities for continued growth within the industry. Water management in much of the world is faced with changing regulations to support the balancing act between power generation, ecological sustainability, and agriculture irrigation. New technologies, equipment, and modern controls systems to optimize production are aiding the industry in this balance while continuing to increase power generation.
Suppliers, like Columbia Industrial Products, must be equipped to provide quality assurance, formal documentation, and products that will perform for decades in mixed use environments. CIP has built a solid reputation while working with the US Army Corps of Engineers, Utilities, and Contractors fulfilling these requirements while providing a high quality bearing product.
CIP Composites is the leading manufacturer of environmentally friendly, self-lubricating bearings and wear pads designed to replace greased bronze components inside a variety of turbine designs, gates and valves, and auxiliary equipment. CIP composite products provide the perfect balance of performance, availability, and cost to satisfy the most rigorous demands of your hydro generation project, no matter the schedule or scale.
Article re-posted with permission from Parker Hannifin Sealing & Shielding Team.
Original content can be found on Parker’s Blog.
We receive many requests from customers asking for recommendations on how to retain seals in an application. One of the most popular "quick fixes" is to apply liberal amounts of adhesive to a standard O-ring type product without respect to groove shape or sealing function. However, Parker OES provides a wide array of sealing technologies, offering innovative solutions to accommodate the challenging and vast sealing needs of our customers.
A customer had been using a standard O-ring product on an outdoor electronic device. This part was sealing the external edge of the enclosure and meant to keep out water and dust. The enclosure was plastic injection molded so this extreme edge had irregular geometry to accommodate the molding process. The original proposal was to shove O-ring cord in place and adhere it down with RTV (Room Temperature Vulcanization) so that it did not fall out during assembly. This left a rust colored stripe exposed on a consumer device due to fitment issues. Parker’s proposal was to replace the O-ring cord with a custom hollow extrusion that fit the available space and allowed complete closure, thus not exposing the seal to be visible. The RTV process was replaced with PSA (Pressure Sensitive Adhesive) that was preassembled to the seal and allowed for quick and clean placement during assembly and retention for any maintenance needed.
USA - An aeration windmill manufacturer installed Vesconite Hilube bushings on its windmills, leading to smoother and more efficient operation. The bushings are an essential component in aeration windmills, which aerate ponds in private and public spaces, since fan rotation is key to ensuring that the diaphragm moves up; compressed air is taken in; and the compressor builds up pressure, which is released into the air line leading to the water. Because of this, the windmills are more efficient at reducing algae and foul smells, controlling mosquitos and creating a healthier environment for fish.
Vesconite Hilube bushings reduce energy costs in renewable energy applications. Turbines associated with these applications need to move rapidly and easily to produce efficient power, meaning wind, wave, tidal and current-driven turbines require a low coefficient of friction. Reduced energy losses as a result of the lower friction present in Vesconite Hilube bushings, allow turbines to rotate easily, producing electricity faster and at a reduced cost.
The drill bit strikes the surface of the stone with a force of 25 tons up to 140 times per second. Its task: to drill 80 holes where explosive charges are inserted. They blast away rock for supply tunnels for underground mining or for road construction. The drill bits are driven by rock drills. Two factors are decisive in keeping operating costs low: On one hand, the holes must be drilled very quickly, even in hard stone such as granite, which requires very powerful forces. On the other hand, despite the strong forces, maintenance intervals are supposed to increase. With the development of its new machine, the COP MD20, Atlas Copco has resolved its conflicting objectives: Without a reduction in the machinery’s rate of advance, the company was able to double its maintenance intervals.
A new sealing system from Freudenberg Sealing Technologies was the key component in accomplishing this, as the metallic components, especially the piston that drives the drill bit, had been previously optimized by using special high-strength alloys. But the forces that are produced, especially during the bit’s recoil, are so high that they severely stress the seals in this high-pressure hydraulic system. If the seals develop wear, the result can be leakage, which has a highly negative effect on the relationship between the applied energy and the boring power – in other words, the system efficiency declines.
GYLON EPIX™ is a family of gaskets that effectively seals a broader range of applications and is more forgiving during the installation process. It allows the end user to save valuable turn-around time, reduce re-work, and lower costs, helping them to finish ahead of schedule and under budget.
GYLON EPIX™ features a hexagonal surface profile that provides the torque retention and blowout resistance of a thin gasket and the conformability of a thicker gasket. GYLON EPIX™ Style 3504 EPX is a high performance, aluminosilicate microsphere filled PTFE sheet material designed for use in moderate concentrations of acids, and caustics, as well as hydrocarbons, refrigerants, and more.
Mining
Copper Mine
Customer reported problems with continuous leaks that required ongoing maintenance and attention taking manpower and resources away from other critical operations for the plant.
Article re-posted with permission from Parker Hannifin Sealing & Shielding Team.
Original content can be found on Parker’s Blog.
Two things are equally important for the reliable performance of an O-Ring seal: the right size and the right material. Parker’s new O-Ring Selector is an engineering tool that enables users to make the right material and size selections easily, quickly and reliably – in a single application. The accuracy of the results ensures the desired performance of the O-Ring in the subsequent application. This is primarily based on the fact that both functionalities – the material selection and the O-Ring size calculation – are closely interlinked. This achieves a new quality in calculating the total sealing system.
The Parker O-Ring Selector is divided into three main sections:
The Service Conditions & Material Selector section is focused on mapping the material-related application conditions. Entering the operating temperature range, the desired polymer family and/or material hardness will take the user to the suitable material selection. The Advanced Material Selector enables experienced users to specify the operating conditions in even greater detail. Here the medium to be sealed can be selected from a database containing 2,500 media. In addition, a search for required approvals and conformities can be run.
Gallagher recently published its Failure Modes of Elastomers in the Semiconductor Industry White Paper, now available for download on our site. This white paper discusses common issues that occur with elastomer seals in the semiconductor industry. The excerpt below is the fourth and final section of our new white paper, discussing Volatiles (offgassing) and Particle Generation. To download the white paper in its entirety, visit our Resources Page, or click on the image to the right.
High performance elastomers are found in many applications in the semiconductor industry (see paper titled Perfluoroelastomers in the Semiconductor Industry). Though perfluoroelastomer (FFKM) seals are formulated to meet the highest performance requirements of integrated circuit (chip) manufacturers, even these elastomers can’t solve every sealing application nor will they last forever in service. Additionally, end users need to understand subtle performance differences between perfluoroelastomers in the same product line. For example, one product may be better at minimizing particle generation while another may be better for high temperature services.