- Email: [email protected]
Gasket failure at US nuclear plant
NEWS
Sterntube seals designed for coastal water Wärtsilä Corporation has introduced a new family of face seals specifically for water-lubricated stern tubes. These seals are intended for vessels sailing frequently in coastal or other waters with high sand and silt contents. The Deep Sea Seals ManeGuard FSE is a fully split face-type seal available for shafts between 80 and 329 mm in diameter. They are able to accept high shaft speeds up to 2700 rev/min.
The seal is designed with all components split, to facilitate seal replacement without the need for shaft removal. They are suitable for all types of water-lubricated bearings and for stern tubes with closed water systems – they can be used both inboard and outboard. The seals incorporate abrasion-resistant face materials, with dissimilar grades of silicon carbide, together with a design to minimize galvanic corrosion to help reduce maintenance costs. The design, including the static elastomer bellows, has been developed to facilitate high-speed shafts with a minimum of vibration. Contact: Wärtsilä Propulsion UK, 4 Marples Way, Havant, Hampshire PO9 1NX, UK. Tel +44 23 9240 0121, Fax: +44 23 9249 2470, Web: www.wartsila.com
The ManeGuard fully split stern tube seal from Wärtsilä Propulsion UK is especially designed for operation in coastal waters and includes abrasion resistant seal faces for operation in sand and silt laden water.
Gas leak causes evacuation In the US, a propane leak from an underground pipeline northwest of Mantador, North Dakota left about 16 residents temporarily displaced from their homes on 15 December, according to the local Daily News. A Dome Company pipeline that runs through Richland County began to leak shortly after 3:30 pm. Dome employees were doing maintenance work on the line when a gasket burst, releasing a vapor cloud. Officials reported a malfunctioning seal on the pipeline, which caused the leak of propane.
Stress, corrosion and cracking of the line were blamed as causes of the leak. The Canadian Pacific Railway was also contacted to temporarily stop all trains from entering the area. It took about two hours to get the leak under control. No injuries were reported and no adjoining property was damaged, but homesteads were immediately evacuated for safety. Editor’s comment: Are stress corrosion and cracking liable to be causes of a gasket failure? Or is this really a pipeline failure?
CD offered to designers A corporate CD-Rom is now available from UK-based Dichtomatik Ltd, intended for designers and specifiers in a wide range of engineering fields. More than 50 000 different products are on offer to the market, which can be supplied in quantities ranging from a single
product to several hundred thousand items. Contact: Dichtomatik Ltd, Donington House, Riverside Road, Pride Park, Derby DE24 8HX, UK. Tel: +44 1332 524400, Fax: +44 1332 524404, Email: [email protected], Web: www.dichtomatik.co.uk
Silvertown UK purchased by Icon New Vamac cures fast in the press Vamac DHC, a new addition to the DuPont range of Vamac ethylene acrylic elastomers, will cure up to 30% faster than existing nopostcure grades while improving compression set and oil resistance. It cures in the molding press, eliminating the cost and delay of traditional oven curing. The material has been developed to minimize cure times while keeping a good balance of oil resistance and heat ageing for seals and gasket applications. Long-term retention of sealing force and low-temperature flexibility are also said to be good. The addition of a no-postcure grade to the Vamac portfolio provides a wide range of materials to meet a variety of requirements for different levels of compression set, temperature resistance and other key properties. The material is intended for a wide range of seals, gaskets, hoses, tubes and other parts for automotive
Sealing Technology February 2005
and other industrial uses. Potential automotive seal and gasket applications include powertrain, rocker cover and bonded piston seals. Applications for hoses and tubes include components for oil coolant, power steering, coolant, crankcase ventilation and coverings for fuel hoses. O-rings, grommets and spark plug boots are additional application examples. It is rated for continuous service up to 150°C. Contacts: DuPont Dow Elastomers LLC, 300 Bellevue Parkway, Suite 300, Wilmington, DE 19809, USA. Tel: +1 302 792 4200, Fax: +1 302 792 4450, Web: www.dupont-dow.com DuPont Dow Elastomers SA, 2 chemin du Pavillon, CH-1218 Le Grand-Saconnex, Geneva, Switzerland, Tel: +41 22 717 4000, Fax: +41 22 717 4001, Web: www.dupont-dow.com
In the UK, the Icon Polymer Group has acquired all of the business units which make up Silvertown UK Ltd. The Icon Polymer Group is a leading manufacturer of technical rubber components, specializing in the provision of safety- and mission-critical solutions for the worldwide aerospace and defense, pharmaceutical, rail transport and automotive industries. The
acquisition is in line with the company’s strategy to build a global business providing bespoke elastomer solutions in marketplaces with a high barrier to entry. Contact: Icon Polymer Group Ltd, Retford, Nottinghamshire DN22 6HH, UK. Tel: +44 1777 714300, Fax: +44 1777 709739, Web: www.iconpolymer.com
Gasket failure at US nuclear plant Detroit Edison, which operates the Fermi 2 nuclear power plant in Newport, Michigan, has found that a damaged gasket on the inlet to one of 14 air cooling units in the containment structure – which surrounds the steel reactor vessel – was the cause of a leak of non-radioactive cooling water
that prompted the shutdown of the plant in late January. ‘A leak of this type does not pose a major risk to the safe operation of the plant, and is not uncommon in any industrial facility,’ says William T. O’Connor, the company’s VP for nuclear generation. ‘Coolers of this type are commonly used in all types of plants and factories.’ 5
Sterntube seals designed for coastal water Wärtsilä Corporation has introduced a new family of face seals specifically for water-lubricated stern tubes. These seals are intended for vessels sailing frequently in coastal or other waters with high sand and silt contents. The Deep Sea Seals ManeGuard FSE is a fully split face-type seal available for shafts between 80 and 329 mm in diameter. They are able to accept high shaft speeds up to 2700 rev/min.
The seal is designed with all components split, to facilitate seal replacement without the need for shaft removal. They are suitable for all types of water-lubricated bearings and for stern tubes with closed water systems – they can be used both inboard and outboard. The seals incorporate abrasion-resistant face materials, with dissimilar grades of silicon carbide, together with a design to minimize galvanic corrosion to help reduce maintenance costs. The design, including the static elastomer bellows, has been developed to facilitate high-speed shafts with a minimum of vibration. Contact: Wärtsilä Propulsion UK, 4 Marples Way, Havant, Hampshire PO9 1NX, UK. Tel +44 23 9240 0121, Fax: +44 23 9249 2470, Web: www.wartsila.com
The ManeGuard fully split stern tube seal from Wärtsilä Propulsion UK is especially designed for operation in coastal waters and includes abrasion resistant seal faces for operation in sand and silt laden water.
Gas leak causes evacuation In the US, a propane leak from an underground pipeline northwest of Mantador, North Dakota left about 16 residents temporarily displaced from their homes on 15 December, according to the local Daily News. A Dome Company pipeline that runs through Richland County began to leak shortly after 3:30 pm. Dome employees were doing maintenance work on the line when a gasket burst, releasing a vapor cloud. Officials reported a malfunctioning seal on the pipeline, which caused the leak of propane.
Stress, corrosion and cracking of the line were blamed as causes of the leak. The Canadian Pacific Railway was also contacted to temporarily stop all trains from entering the area. It took about two hours to get the leak under control. No injuries were reported and no adjoining property was damaged, but homesteads were immediately evacuated for safety. Editor’s comment: Are stress corrosion and cracking liable to be causes of a gasket failure? Or is this really a pipeline failure?
CD offered to designers A corporate CD-Rom is now available from UK-based Dichtomatik Ltd, intended for designers and specifiers in a wide range of engineering fields. More than 50 000 different products are on offer to the market, which can be supplied in quantities ranging from a single
product to several hundred thousand items. Contact: Dichtomatik Ltd, Donington House, Riverside Road, Pride Park, Derby DE24 8HX, UK. Tel: +44 1332 524400, Fax: +44 1332 524404, Email: [email protected], Web: www.dichtomatik.co.uk
Silvertown UK purchased by Icon New Vamac cures fast in the press Vamac DHC, a new addition to the DuPont range of Vamac ethylene acrylic elastomers, will cure up to 30% faster than existing nopostcure grades while improving compression set and oil resistance. It cures in the molding press, eliminating the cost and delay of traditional oven curing. The material has been developed to minimize cure times while keeping a good balance of oil resistance and heat ageing for seals and gasket applications. Long-term retention of sealing force and low-temperature flexibility are also said to be good. The addition of a no-postcure grade to the Vamac portfolio provides a wide range of materials to meet a variety of requirements for different levels of compression set, temperature resistance and other key properties. The material is intended for a wide range of seals, gaskets, hoses, tubes and other parts for automotive
Sealing Technology February 2005
and other industrial uses. Potential automotive seal and gasket applications include powertrain, rocker cover and bonded piston seals. Applications for hoses and tubes include components for oil coolant, power steering, coolant, crankcase ventilation and coverings for fuel hoses. O-rings, grommets and spark plug boots are additional application examples. It is rated for continuous service up to 150°C. Contacts: DuPont Dow Elastomers LLC, 300 Bellevue Parkway, Suite 300, Wilmington, DE 19809, USA. Tel: +1 302 792 4200, Fax: +1 302 792 4450, Web: www.dupont-dow.com DuPont Dow Elastomers SA, 2 chemin du Pavillon, CH-1218 Le Grand-Saconnex, Geneva, Switzerland, Tel: +41 22 717 4000, Fax: +41 22 717 4001, Web: www.dupont-dow.com
In the UK, the Icon Polymer Group has acquired all of the business units which make up Silvertown UK Ltd. The Icon Polymer Group is a leading manufacturer of technical rubber components, specializing in the provision of safety- and mission-critical solutions for the worldwide aerospace and defense, pharmaceutical, rail transport and automotive industries. The
acquisition is in line with the company’s strategy to build a global business providing bespoke elastomer solutions in marketplaces with a high barrier to entry. Contact: Icon Polymer Group Ltd, Retford, Nottinghamshire DN22 6HH, UK. Tel: +44 1777 714300, Fax: +44 1777 709739, Web: www.iconpolymer.com
Gasket failure at US nuclear plant Detroit Edison, which operates the Fermi 2 nuclear power plant in Newport, Michigan, has found that a damaged gasket on the inlet to one of 14 air cooling units in the containment structure – which surrounds the steel reactor vessel – was the cause of a leak of non-radioactive cooling water
that prompted the shutdown of the plant in late January. ‘A leak of this type does not pose a major risk to the safe operation of the plant, and is not uncommon in any industrial facility,’ says William T. O’Connor, the company’s VP for nuclear generation. ‘Coolers of this type are commonly used in all types of plants and factories.’ 5