New type 93AX Coaxial Separation seal reduces nitrogen consumption by 80%
Rotating equipment provider John Crane has launched its Type 93AC Coaxial Separation Seal, a next generation dry gas sealing solution for reduced emissions, improved equipment reliability, and lower operational costs.
The new sealing technology builds on the company's previous expertise in the area, with a fail-safe design which is operational even in the event of multiple failure scenarios. Design was informed using customer feedback and test data, with the most recent data suggesting the mechanical seal reduces nitrogen consumption by up to 80% when compared with traditional radial separation seals.
Contamination is a leading cause of unscheduled maintenance and equipment downtime, due to its significance in dry gas seal failures. The Type 93AX has been designed to prevent oil ingress from the compressor bearing chamber, reducing risk and enabling continuous operation.
Mike Eason, chief technology officer at John Crane, said: "Our customers told us they wanted a separation seal that increases safety, efficiency, and reliability. The Type 93AX delivers on these priorities. It's designed to keep working in real-world failure conditions to protect their most critical assets, and reduce environmental impact, while driving down Opex and Capex.”
Resilience is provided by three different scenarios. The first is in standard operation, where non-contacting operation gives positive oil ingress mitigation. Second, the separation of gas loss where non-contact is maintained without a separation gas. Finally, dry gas seal failure leads to restricted process gas leakage during compressor shutdown, up to 35 bar, while maintaining seal integrity up to 70 bar.
Eason added: "The new seal is compatible with John Crane's dry gas seal portfolio and is supported by a global network of over 200 facilities, including manufacturing, sales and services, and 13 global turbo service centres in more than 50 countries. It can be sold as part of a bundled first-fit order or compressor upgrade, or supplied as a stand-alone product to meet customer-specific requirements.”
Deloitte found unplanned downtime costs global process industries roughly $50 billion annually, with equipment failure being responsible for 42% of unplanned downtime. This can result in a $42 million per facility per year, on average.
