Increased efficiency
An example of a high temperature application, beyond the normal range of conventional gasket materials, is an industrial turbocharger. Industrial turbochargers are turbine-driven forced induction devices that increase an engine's efficiency. They are typically used in marine, power generation and rail applications and run on fuels ranging from marine diesel oil and natural gas to varying qualities of HFO and landfill gas. Industrial turbochargers often operate in hostile environments and at high temperatures.
The technical team at Phoenix Sealing was asked to assist in providing sealing solutions by a leading manufacturer of industrial turbochargers. The seals were subject to operating temperatures of 600degC and moderate pressure. Previous attempts at finding a long-term sealing solution had proved fruitless, the gaskets has either leaked or failed completely including those rated by the supplier to withstand the conditions.
Tight seal at elevated temperatures
Phoenix technical engineers offered PG-Therm, a sealing material based on processed phlogopite mica that contains a very low content of inorganic binder. The weight loss properties of this material are claimed to be superior to conventional sealing materials, which enables the material to maintain a tight seal at elevated temperatures. PG-Therm has reportedly proved to be highly successful in operation and is now specified as the sole material for all high temperature bolted connections within the turbochargers.
