che_april-2024 - 16

Trelleborg
FIGURE 4. Trelleborg's FoodPro EPDM seals
comply with the most comprehensive global foodcontact-material
regulations, are suitable for use
with virtually all food-and-beverage products and
can withstand harsh CIP and SIP processes
and process industries, with Roxtec
International AB (Karlskrona,
Sweden; www.roxtec.com). " Oiland-gas
companies are making
moves to upgrade their operations
to reduce their carbon footprint and,
for many energy providers, energy
transition is moving higher on the
agenda every year. When adding
units for hydrogen, carbon capture
and biofuels, they need safety and
quality, as well as sealing expertise
within these energy transition projects.
And while sealing products
may be small components in large
capital projects, they play an important
role in safety and serve as important
solutions for any operation
that handles explosive and flammable
gases. "
Further, for decarbonization projects,
seals are used in hydrocracking
units, electrolyzers and biofuel
plants handling renewable natural
gas (RNG), steam methane reforming
is) and dairy manure, as well as
in e-fuel production facilities and
carbon-capture units. They secure
Roxtec
green-hydrogen-generation plants
attached to ammonia and fertilizer
plants. " In these applications, Roxtec
seals are installed around cables
and pipes in buildings, containers
and cabinets and provide approved
solutions for hazardous locations, "
says Konradsson. " As with any
hazardous industry, the main concern
and top priority is safety and
reliable
operation.
The
risks
mented a gas-operated seal for a
new green-energy technology that
extracts energy from a plant's wastesteam
streams, " says Evans. " This
energy is then put back into the
plant's electrical system for reuse,
both saving the plant money and reducing
their waste energy stream for
greater sustainability and reduction
of their carbon footprint. "
of
production disruptions, severe accidents
and worst-case loss of life
must be minimized and avoided.
This is done by using seals that
prevent potentially explosive gases
from entering cabinets and equipment
in ATEX-classified areas, as
well as by protecting buildings from
fire and ingress of water. "
In answer, Roxtec provides HD
EX transit solutions (Figure 5). " HD
stands for high density and refers to
the high number of cables that can
be safely routed through a minimum
area of a cabinet, " explains Konradsson.
" This migration from traditional
cable glands has resulted in smaller
and lighter cabinets, which saves
money, time and space in projects.
These seals also allow for late cable
changes and modifications without
having to do drilling or welding on
site. Users simply open the seal,
route the new cable through and
use the compression unit to seal the
opening again. Roxtec seals can
be used with both standard and
armored cables. The BG (bonding
and grounding) modules come fitted
with an integrated copper braid,
which bonds the armor in accordance
with Underwriters Laboratories
Standard UL
514B.
Also realizing the
need to create seals
that are compatible
with the greenenergy
movement,
Chesterton has a
dedicated research
and engineering
team that works
on designs to meet
the specific
requireFIGURE
5. Roxtec HD EX transit solutions allow smaller and lighter cabinets,
saving money, time and space in energy transition projects in CPI.
These seals also allow for late cable changes and modifications without
having to do drilling or welding on site
16
ments of these types
of applications. " For
example, we have
designed and impleAnd,
the fuel-cell market is also necessitating
the use of novel sealing
technologies, as well, says Stockwell's
Rimel. For example, fuel cells,
which are a growing technology in
decarbonization efforts as they are
devices that generate electricity
through an electrochemical reaction
rather than combustion, require gaskets
that offer temperature resistance,
strength and inertness, says Rimel.
Stockwell offers platinum-cured silicone
rubber that can be molded into
flat, window gasket configurations or
made with added sealing beads for
these applications. Fuel-cell gaskets
of this material can be die cut, waterjet
cut or molded to custom geometries
as needed and offer improved
compression set properties. " The
improved compression set, along
with the purity of the platinum-cure
silicone have found favor with the fuel
cell industry, " he says.
Similarly, he says, electric vehicle
(EV) batteries require a lot of seals,
because most of the structures
have multiple layers of materials that
must be built into a self-contained
unit. " EV batteries can have issues
with heat buildup and, if there is
too much heat, it can degrade the
battery and shorten its lifespan, or
worse, generate fire that must be
prevented from spreading, " he explains.
" There are opportunities
there for elastomers, membranes
and other materials that deliver
specified performance. The seals
and gaskets in these applications
must have different fire ratings and
temperature ranges than traditional
automobile seals and gaskets. "
He continues: " As we continue to
see more green and sustainable technologies,
there will be a call to provide
different seal and gasket materials
and technologies to match the needs
of these niche applications. "
n
Joy LePree
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM
APRIL 2024
http://www.roxtec.com http://WWW.CHEMENGONLINE.COM
che_april-2024

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