When it comes to food, Freudenberg wants to be sure that its sealing materials are free of harmful substances.
In the food processing industry, in order to guarantee food safety, both the food and the hardware that come into contact with it must meet particularly stringent criteria. These guidelines also apply to sealing materials.
In China, specific standards were created in 2016 with the two standards GB 4806 and GB 9685, which deviate from the existing relevant American and European regulations for food-grade materials. To meet the stringent Chinese regulations, FST has now successfully tested two proven VMQ materials: 70 VMQ 117055 and 60 VMQ 117117 for their conformity with Chinese guidelines.
The Chinese standard GB 9685
It’s time for maintenance at a beverage bottling facility. Different components of the equipment are opened up, and the seals on tubes, pumps and valves are checked. If they are worn out, they have to be replaced. But if they are still intact, the check itself – a common yet expensive process – is superfluous. What would happen if the seals themselves could autonomously measure and transmit information about the level of their wear? And determine the exact point – no sooner and no later – when little of the seal lip is left and the seal has to be replaced? The future of seals may lie
During the June 17-23 event in Paris, Freudenberg showcased a new high temperature, fireproof material; an Omegat OMS-CS cap seal; and new ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM) and a fluoroelastomer (FKM) developmental material.
“Our aerospace customers strive continuously to be faster, safer and more efficient, which in turn requires us to innovate to help them reach those goals – a challenge we enthusiastically embrace,” said Vinay Nilkanth, vice president, Global Mobility Sector, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies. “The launch of several new products aimed at improved performance underscores Freudenberg’s commitment to being a global
But what’s great for an individual customer – a cherry-ginger-lime cream soda, for example – can play havoc with the elastomer seals inside the machine. Add in hygienic cleaning requirements and proper food contact certifications and equipment manufacturers can find themselves spending months chasing challenges like flavor transfer, leaks and material compliance approvals.
Freudenberg-NOK Sealing Technologies, a leading specialist in advanced sealing applications, has a portfolio of solutions to resolve these issues. The company, which runs the business operations for Freudenberg
Gallagher Fluid Seals, Inc. has exciting news for its customers. EagleBurgmann, a leading provider of industrial sealing technology, has awarded Gallagher Fluid Seals with exclusive distribution rights in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic territory of the United States. The territory includes Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Washington D.C., and Virginia.
2019
Freudenberg-NOK Sealing Technologies has begun supplying innovative, lightweight radial shaft seals to a major Detroit-based vehicle manufacturer for installation on the V6 and V8 engines powering its newest pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUVs). Enter the Freudenberg BlueSeal.
The BlueSeal, part of Freudenberg’s award-winning Low Emission Sealing Solution (LESS) portfolio of engine, transmission and E-Mobility product solutions, provides significant weight, friction and installation advantages over traditional radial shaft seals. Under the contract, Freudenberg-NOK will produce more than 2 million BlueSeals annually. Production is expected to increase further to more than 4 million units annually with orders from additional customers.
There are over 155,000 public water systems in the United States and more than 286 million Americans who rely on community water systems daily. Since most of the infrastructure was built between the early 1900's and 1960 using outdated technology/products and capabilities, nearly everything is approaching the natural end of it's lifespan.
Some estimates put the repairs and replacement of the infrastructure between $250B and $500B over the next 20-30 years. Several applications will need to be updated or fully replaced for the safety of consumers and quality of delivery, including:
Radial shaft seals, also known as lip seals, are used to seal rotary elements, like a shaft or rotating bore. Hydraulic pump seals, axle seals, valve stem seals, or strut seals are the most common examples the average person would recognize.
Radial shaft seals are used in a variety of applications and perform two essential functions: the first is to avoid leakage through retaining the bearing or system lubricant; the secondary function is to avoid the contamination of the system by outside impacts (external particles or environmental issues).
Gear motors, pumps and stirring units keep process material in constant motion in the process industry’s production facilities. A large number of shaft seals are used at drive shafts to keep liquids securely within the equipment. But leaks may be more likely to occur if the pressure acting on the seals becomes too great. Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has developed a new rotary seal, the Gerromatic, which has a wave-shaped sealing lip. This increases the maximum amount of pressure that can be applied. The sinusoidal contact path also reduces friction and provides self-cleaning, which extends operating life.
In the process industry, including the food and beverage sector, shaft seals used in equipment mostly have a rotation-symmetrical seal lip, which abuts the rotating shaft with a groove-like contact pattern. During wet-running, this can cause the medium to be displaced at the contact surface. The seal then runs in a more or less dry condition, leading to increased friction and higher temperatures. The increased friction increases wear and reduces the efficiency of the equipment. The accompanying rise in temperature is not desirable, especially when the process media are temperature-sensitive. If the seal lip is also exposed to high temperatures at high rotational speeds – for example, due to a process material that applies pressure to the seal lip in a vessel with a stirring unit below it – the lip can fold down on the low-pressure side, which would result in immediate leakage and the seal’s failure.
When it comes to sealing food and beverage systems against leaks, contamination and malfunctions, meeting a product specification does not guarantee that seals will function as needed, two Freudenberg-NOK Sealing Technologies experts told a webinar audience in September. Freudenberg-NOK runs the business operations for Freudenberg Sealing Technologies in the Americas.
“Today’s global industry means engineering for multiple markets and diverse regulatory compliance standards, which can be challenging and expensive, so it must be considered early,” said Clark. “Simply meeting a product specification does not ensure a seal will function."