Vesconite Hilube pump bearings – no swell, can run dry, longest wear life

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Success stories

Vesconite Hilube is an ideal pump bearing material used in many critical pump bearing applications.

Vesconite Hilube is used for support bearings and lineshaft bearings and wear rings, in vertical turbine, sump and other pumps.

 Vesconite Hilube Pump Bearings

• No swell in water

• Low friction

• Ideal for dry startup – can run up to 1 minute dry

• Low wear rate

Applications include
Flood water and river pumps
Fire fighting and service water pumps for offshore oil drilling platforms
High pressure bilge pumps
Cooling water pumps for power stations
Irrigation and potable water supply pumps
High pressure dewatering pumps for underground mines

Lineshaft bearings, pump bowl bearings and stuffing box bearings
Dimensional stability with no water swell gives bearings with tighter clearances.
Vesconite Hilube can be lubricated with water, sea water or many other pumped fluids.
Low friction Vesconite Hilube can run for over 1 minute in dry running or dry start-up conditions.

Use dimensionally stable Vesconite for impeller and casing wear rings
Wear rings manufactured with dimensionally stable Vesconite can be operated with small clearances without the fear of galling. Closer clearances gives higher efficiency due to lower by-pass.

Vesconite Hilube compared to other pump bearing materials
Vesconite Hilube compared to rubber lined bearings.
Rubber bearings have high friction and must be constantly lubricated with water. Rubber swells in water. Vesconite Hilube carries a higher load than rubber and has a lower friction.

Vesconite Hilube compared to laminated materials.
Laminated materials tend to absorb water and delaminate. Laminated materials can result in high shaft wear and noisy operation. Vesconite Hilube has no water swell and no chance of delamination. Vesconite Hilube bearings are quiet and give an exceptionally low wear to bearing and shaft.

Vesconite Hilube compared to bronze bearings
Bronze must be lubricated to operate. Even with grease or oil, bronze has a higher friction than Vesconite Hilube running dry. Internally lubricated Vesconite Hilube has a low friction and survives a temporary suspension of the water flow. Vesconite Hilube can be lubricated with water, oil or grease or many other available fluids.

Vesconite Hilube compared to elastomers
Elastomers lack dimensional stability – they absorb water and have a high thermal expansion. Larger clearances must be used resulting in a more unstable and vibrating shaft and a loss of allowable wear life. Elastomers do not have the same strength as Vesconite.
Vesconite Hilube does not absorb water and so closer clearances can be maintained without the fear of seizure.

Some Vesconite Hilube application successes

Vesconite Hilube overcomes a 30 second dry start-up on a large vertical circulating water pump application

A USA manufactured sea water pump for an off shore oil rig in Asia required a 30 second dry start up once per week. Pump capacity 150 000 l/min, pump speed  500 RPM. Vesconite Hilube replaced rubber bearings for lower friction and an ability to handle a dry start-up.

Vesconite solves power station cooling water feed pumps dry running problem

Vesconite bearings in cooling water feed pumps at New Zealand gas fired thermal power station have overcome problems caused by the interruption of process water. Before using Vesconite, these interruptions caused serious bearing failure. Drysdale Pump – 5" discharge pipe, 5 Bar, 60 HP, 1450 RPM

Water supply to the pumps can be blocked by sea weed. The original rubber bearings would often overheat and be severely damaged within 30 seconds, often before the alarm was sounded. Bearings were replaced with self lubricating Vesconite which solved problems associated with interrupted water flow.  

Vesconite for inline shaft bearings for Mono axial flow pump.

Pump size : 12" and 16", 1460 RPM, 110 KW

Original intake (suction bell) bearings were fitted with bronze bearings grease lubricated twice daily. During seasonal rains, large quantities of sand are suspended in the pumped water.

Vesconite bearings were fitted with a clean water bearing flush.

High volume pumps

A USA company ordered pumps for water station.
1600 mm (42”), 1300 KW  Single stage, 20 meter head, 3800 litres/sec

Dirty River Pump

Vesconite Hilube supplied to a pump manufacturer for Vertical Turbine pumps for irrigation system at the Nile River in Sudan.

Bearings lubricated with silty process water.

Dry running tests conducted with Vesconite Hilube
Pressure P = 0.4 kg/cm² (5.7 psi)
Surface velocity v = 360 m/min (1152 fpm)
PV = 136 kg.m/min.cm² (6566 psi.fpm)

Vesconite Hilube survived these conditions for well over 1 minute without damaging the bearing. 90% of dry start up specifications require only a 1 minute running time.

Visitors         Updated Nov 19 2009

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