Hydrocarbon Processing - August 2022 - 82

Maintenance and Reliability
tor. Irradiated cross-linked tape is needed
to ensure low swelling rates in the presence
of oils or greases. If adhesive-coated
insulating tape-as used by electricians
in residential work-with its unavoidably
high swell rates were being used, the
tape would become gummy and unravel
when hot (FIG. 2). This would impede
the flow of cooling air.
Top motor suppliers recognize the
responsibility as suppliers of coaxial
connectors, cable assemblies and components
used within products that are
targeted for contact with lubricants.
Likewise, reliability-focused user companies
make sound choices. Their SMEs
will steer an organization towards working
with responsible and trustworthy
electric motor makers. These SMEs'
motor specifications or procurement
documents would contain the words " irradiated
cross-linked polymer tape " and
spell out maximum allowable swell rates
in numeric terms.
Manufacturers deserving responsible
and trustworthy personnel make it their
goal to understand the purchaser's priorities
completely. By disclosing the range
of capabilities of their products and
components, the vendor/manufacturer
becomes the purchaser's technology resource.
Alternatively, and preferably, a
reliability-focused user-purchaser will
groom and nurture SMEs whose tasks
include the development of rigorous motor
specifications. These specifications
should ensure the motors in the plants
incorporate only confirmed suitable Tlead
insulation. Common sense tells us
that reliability engineering includes hundreds
of details, as highlighted here.
Although a common product will
suffice in most applications,
standard
stretchable insulating tape will not serve
well as an oil-resistant cable termination.
Oil resistance can also be an important
consideration in the terminal boxes of oil
mist-lubricated electric motors. Common
electrical tape swelling near the
stator windings in an electric motor may
impede motor cooling effectiveness, and
insufficient heat removal can then drastically
reduce winding life.
The user company described here
has gone back to grease lubrication on
all its motor bearings throughout the
facility, and its pump and motor mean
times between repairs have now fallen
well below the values for which the company
received much acclaim in 1984. We
would recommend they look for future
degreed fluid machinery engineers or
graduates of a fluid machinery technology
institute, which today exists only in
our imagination.
HEINZ P. BLOCH resides in
Montgomery, Texas. His
professional career commenced
in 1962 and included long-term
assignments as Exxon Chemical's
Regional Machinery Specialist
for the U.S. He has authored or
co-written more than 780 publications, among them,
24 comprehensive books on practical machinery
management, failure analysis, failure avoidance,
compressors, steam turbines, pumps, oil mist
lubrication and optimized lubrication for the
industry. Mr. Bloch holds BS and MS degrees
(cum laude) in mechanical engineering. He is
an ASME Life Fellow and was awarded lifetime
registration as a professional engineer in New Jersey
(U.S.). Mr. Bloch is one of 10 inaugural inductees
into NCE's Hall of Fame, which honors its most
distinguished alumni.
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