provide increased circulation of liquid at seal faces without the use of external flush. The offer the advantages of lower maintenance costs, elimination of tubing/piping, lower utility costs (associated with seal flushing) and extended seal reliability.
ITT Goulds Pumps (www.gouldspumps.com), a manufacturer of pumps, pump parts and pump control systems, is offering a compendium of resources on its Web site to aid end-users in all aspects of pump systems selection, including the area of mechanical seals. In its online selection tool for mechanical seals, Goulds recommends users make a concerted effort to identify and understand the full operating conditions of their process environment prior to specifying a mechanical sealing solution for a given pump. Goulds suggests users examine such process parameters as liquid, pressure, temperature, characteristics of the liquid, and reliability.
According to Goulds, the number one cause of pump downtime is failure of the shaft seal. The company says these failures are normally the result of an unfavorable seal environment, such as improper heat dissipation (cooling), poor lubrication of seal faces, or seals operating in liquids containing solids, air or vapors. To achieve maximum reliability of a seal application, Goulds says proper choices of seal housings (standard bore stuffing box, large bore or large tapered bore seal chamber) and seal environmental controls (CPI and API seal flush plans) must be made.
In its online tutorial, Goulds provides an overview of such key elements of the mechanical seal as the "Standard Bore Stuffing Box Cover", "Conventional Large Bore Seal Chamber", and "Large Bore Seal Chambers". Under the umbrella of its pump selection tutorials, Goulds also covers such topics as "Pump Fundamentals", "Conversion Factors & Engineering Data", "Corrosion & Materials of Construction", "Piping Design", and "Pump Operation & Maintenance".
To view the Goulds online tutorial on mechanical seals, visit www.gouldspumps.com/pag_0016.html.
