The safe-return-to-port feature of Thordon Bearings’ TG100 emergency situation shaft seal has once more stopped a vessel from sinking adhering to a devastating shaft failing.
The staff of the MM Transportation- run Jennifer S, a 17m (56ft) lengthy workboat operating on the Ohio River, near Rockport, Indiana, triggered Thordon’s additional blow up emergency situation seal when the tailshaft was taken out of the combining, harming the TG100’s main aft shaft seal.
On the night of February third 2020, the Jennifer S was lugging a dredge when the starboard shaft line came to be braided with a buoy’s cord rope, compeling the shaft from the center at the transmission. This, consequently, caused the aft shaft nut at the wheel striking the tail when in the complete in advance setting creating the shaft to glide also more aft.
The initial TG100 seal that conserved the vessel from sinking|Image Credits: thordonbearings.com
Jason Perry, Thordon’s Business Development Manager, U.S.A., claimed: “When steering became stiff, the crew went down to the engine room and noticed water gushing in up to the deck plates. They immediately activated the TG100’s emergency seal, which prevented further water ingress.”
When the vessel was evaluated, port designers discovered that the shaft had actually come loose from the combining, knocking right into the whole revolving setting up and also harming the TG100 seal’s silicon carbide deals with, which consequently reduced a 25.4 mm (1in) divided throughout the bellows.
“Had this vessel not been installed with Thordon’s emergency seal technology, the vessel was likely to have sunk,” claimed Perry.
Scott Groves, Thordon Bearings’ Regional Manager, Americas, enhanced that the emergency situation feature assisted maintain the seal’s taper lock (wedge ring) ready on the shaft, avoiding the vessel’s shaft from totally moving out of the vessel.
New TG100 seal set up on the Jennifer S|Image Credits: thordonbearings.com
“We are extremely confident that no other shaft seal currently available is able to prevent complete seal failure in such a scenario. I have my doubts as to whether a conventional seal would have responded as well as the TG100 in such circumstances. Certainly, standard clamp rings with a set screw would have been unable to hold position when the shaft seal was so heavily damaged,” he claimed.
Thordon’s tapered lock/wedge ring tightens up to the shaft under forward pressures to preserve compression of the bellows on the shaft, also if the whole setting up is harmed or the tailshaft pulls back.
“Everyone onboard was safe, dry, and went home to their families that night,” claimed Perry.
Thordon’s United States Inland Waterways group got to the port and also a brand-new TG100 seal was set up on February sixth 2020.
Jeff Hall, Drydocking Manager, MM Transportation, claimed: “We received excellent service from Thordon who helped reinstall a new TG100 seal and replaced the silicon carbide faces on the port seal, which were also damaged when the shaft came loose. We have the seals on two other workboats and will definitely be installing the same system on others. The TG100 seal saved our boat.”
A comparable event took place in 2015 when the staff of a 2002-built twin-screw workboat triggered the TG100’s additional seal after experiencing devastating shaft failing in the Mississippi River north ofNew Orleans This vessel was the really initial workboat to be fitted with a TG100 seal, in 2011.
Commenting on the success of the TG100 seal, Craig Carter, Director of Marketing & & Customer Service, claimed:“The TG100 has an excellent performance record with hundreds of units now in service. It really is an important component to vessel safety, protecting not only the lives of the crew but also the vessel.”
