Strict hygiene regulations in the food industry present major challenges for sealing technology. Freudenberg Sealing Technologies is enhancing its proven portfolio of hygienic sealing solutions with two products that are also designed for high-pressure applications. This was made possible thanks to special design solutions and the premium elastomer and PTFE materials developed in-house.
Food processing demands strict hygiene and cleanliness standards. It’s also important to ensure that no substances can migrate from the materials coming in contact with food, which could lead to contamination of the product. With its hygienic product line, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has developed sealing solutions that fulfill food industry standards and are also resistant to CIP/SIP media. The Hygienic Forseal and Hygienic Pressure Seal are the newest members of this innovative product family.
One of the basic requirements for sealing solutions in accordance with the hygienic design standards is a dead-space-free construction. It prevents the collection and settling of product residues and micro-organisms in undercuts, for example. The selection of applied materials and their resistance to hot water, steam, acids, alkalis and high pressures are also relevant. Observing the deformation at the relevant temperature plays a particularly important role in detecting distortions and the associated formation of dead spaces at an early stage in the product development.
Valves are indispensable components in the hygienically sensitive systems used in the food, beverage and pharmaceutical industries. Until now, there were no high-pressure valves available for food-product contact applications that conformed to 3-A® standards. These global hygiene standards address the design and manufacturing of components that come into contact with food.
Bardiani Valvole approached Gallagher's partner, Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, for help in developing a solution to tap into its material expertise. As a result of joint cooperation, Freudenberg engineers developed a main rod seal that was both 3-A® compliant and capable of handling high-pressure of up to 2175 psi (150 bar) that the customer’s valve required. The main rod seal incorporates proven Freudenberg technology with advanced component design in an entirely new combination that is also compatible with other industrial high-pressure valves.
The 3-A® compliant main rod seal combines a sealing lip, manufactured from EPDM 302 or Fluoroprene® XP 43, with a backup ring made of PTFE. Freudenberg’s product engineers were inspired by the design of a proven shaft seal and an O-ring with a backup ring. In order to meet development and cost deadlines, the team initially produced one-off prototypes to share with Bardiani Valvole using the unique capabilities of Freudenberg Xpress®, a fast turnaround, high-quality manufacturing service that can generate custom seals in as little as a day. It offers machined seals made of original materials and original profiles for prototypes, spare parts or economical small series.
By eliminating the need to set up manufacturing tooling to produce sample parts, this results in considerable cost and time advantages for the customer. Thanks to special turning and milling techniques, individual designs can be tuned to exact specifications. The tailor-made sealing solution for the new high-pressure valve could also be produced economically in an extremely short time. The Freudenberg Xpress® Service is represented at numerous Freudenberg sites worldwide, enabling rapid delivery of spare parts, for example.
The seal’s design is free of dead space and prevents residue infiltration from process and cleaning media. It is hygienic, easier to clean, and compliant with all relevant material specifications for food, beverage, and pharmaceutical industry applications. Both materials used have very good thermal resistance and excellent mechanical properties. They also meet the demanding requirements for use in Cleaning in Place and Sterilization in Place (CIP/SIP) processes.
The design offers significant weight, cost and friction advantages over separate bearings and seals and also improves the properties of the mated bearings and seals. Freudenberg has validated the advantages of this new component through extensive testing performed in a sensor housing unit including the seal-bearing component.
While mostly hidden from view, seals and bearings are nonetheless important components in automotive and industrial applications. They are key elements in operational safety and performance and their durability must be optimized to prevent system failure. At the same time, these bearings and seals must be small, lightweight and cost efficient in keeping with manufacturers’
Through a new “scoop” feature, the enhanced Levitorq design is able to collect and push lubrication under the washer to enable higher critical speeds and enhanced performance. Levitorq is part of the company’s Low Emission Sealing Solutions (LESS) product portfolio.
The original Levitorq design was created to reduce weight, decrease friction, improve thickness/flatness control and often provide a cost benefit to the customer. It relies on the principles of hydrodynamic oil film technology and is designed to create a surface on which a bearing can roll, or a load can be applied. Traditionally, thrust washers are made from metals, but Freudenberg has used its material expertise and design knowledge, along with proprietary software and testing capabilities,
In many operating conditions, the shafts used in electric powertrains are electrically insulated from their housings. The insulation is created by the lubricating films in the contact zones for the bearing and the shaft seals. Lubrication is necessary to promote long-term system functionality. Alternating current and its electromagnetic fields produce changes in the electric potential between the rotor and the stator and the rotor becomes charged. The current can only be drained off through a grounded system that allows the electricity to travel from the shaft to the housing. If there is no grounded pathway, the current flows to the area of least resistance – the bearing – and produces an abrupt discharge
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
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
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."
Due to the growing energy density of battery systems, the developers of lithium ion batteries must satisfy ever higher safety requirements. It is especially crucial to keep a single damaged cell from overheating the entire battery module. Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has developed a innovative heat shields for use in prismatic and pouch cells with almost no impact on the required installation space. It combines the high heat resistance of a silicone-based elastomer with the high insulating properties of air.
The goal is greater range without the battery growing in size and weight: High energy density, which has been battery developers’ top priority, creates a basis for the broad acceptance of electric vehicles. But the more energy is stored in a confined space, the greater the safety requirements. So precautions are essential in case a damaged cell overheats. Experts call the phenomenon “thermal runaway,” and it can cause the temperatures in a cell to rise as high as 600°C. The risk is that the battery’s cooling system would not be able to drain the heat away quickly enough under these conditions. If neighboring healthy cells also heat up due to the heat buildup, a chain reaction can result that, in the worst case, could lead the entire battery system to explode.