What are the causes of damage to the mechanical seals in urea processing equipment?
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What are the reasons for the damage to the machine seals in urea processing equipment? The rate at which the machine seals in our facilities get damaged is quite astonishing; it’s necessary to replace them every two or three days. Is it the tightness of the moving ring and the stationary ring, or hasn’t the gap been adjusted properly? Is it still a problem with the operation? Is it still a quality issue? Some say it is the crystallization of urea ammonium solution that causes wear on the mechanical seal. Many reasons have been given, but the root cause has not been identified. The manager said that it needs to be replaced with a packing seal. This results in an **increase in maintenance costs**.
Could you tell me where the mechanical seal is so prone to failure? There are usually three reasons: the quality of the mechanical seal, installation, and operation.
It’s way too expensive to change the machine seal every two or three days! Mechanical seal failure is, apart from the factors mentioned for the equipment, mostly due to process-related reasons: gas presence, evacuation, and crystallization.
It breaks down all the time; replacing it with a gasket only makes things worse. If crystallization is an issue, could we consider using a mechanical seal that comes with a flushing function?
The original poster didn’t specify which pumps The lifespan of mechanical seals varies certainly under different media and operating conditions. If pumps that are under stable operating conditions and require almost no maintenance are having their mechanical seals replaced, then the quality of those seals should be questioned.
The feed pump for the hydrolysis tower, the circulation pump for the absorption tower, the reflux pump, and the urea melting pump are the ones that are most prone to damage
Check if it’s due to process operation issues! ! It is not recommended to switch to a packing seal! ! If the quality of the mechanical seal itself is indeed the issue, it is recommended to seek seal manufacturers in China such as Nippon Sealing or Borgman, which have experience dealing with similar operating conditions, to redesign the mechanical seal !
Reply to 1# Ran Hongyang: Is insulation provided at the pump body, the sealing chamber, and the tail end of the static ring of the sealing gland?
Reply to 8# Ran Hongyang: Then we need to check whether the temperature is too high, if evacuation is occurring, if crystallization is taking place, and whether the washing water is turned on