Help: What is the medium inside the seal heat exchanger of a centrifugal pump?
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This post was last edited by 3983596_FPPZ on 2019-7-6 at 15:47. I have a question: the centrifugal pump transports hot water, and hot water is used for sealing; what is the medium inside the seal heat exchanger? Could it be oil?
Hot water flows through the tube side of the heat exchanger, while cooling water flows through the shell side
Center-opening pumps are suitable for transporting clean water; the fluid to be transported flows through the tubes of this heat exchanger, while cooling water flows through the shell.
Generally, circulating water is used to cool the sealing medium itself, thereby indirectly reducing the temperature of the mechanical seal
Judging from the photos, it should be PLAN23, a single-face mechanical seal. The medium being transported is clean but at a high temperature; it is sent to the cooler (in the tube side) via the seal pump’s delivery ring for cooling before returning to the seal, while the external cooling water flows through the shell side of the cooler.
Judging from the picture, it seems to be heat exchange between hot water and circulating water, not oil.
Configuration scheme PL23 in API682 standard
The pipes in the photo of your pump are not clearly visible, but it can be inferred that PLAN21 is the most likely option. PLAN21 draws the medium being transported from the pump’s outlet (the high-pressure area), cools it through a heat exchanger (those two tanks you have), and then uses this cooled fluid to wash the seal surface. Whether it’s PLAN21 or PLAN23, the heat exchanger remains essentially the same; the process fluid is carried through the tube side of the exchanger, while cooling water flows through the shell side. According to API standards, when the water temperature exceeds 80 degrees, a PLAN21 or PLAN23 system is required. Generally speaking, center-opening pumps are not suitable for transporting hot water or other hazardous fluids due to the sealing surfaces of their pump body and cover.