A global petrochemical company, headquartered in South Korea, has ordered 20 pump bushings made of Vesconite Hilube, a premier-grade bearing material.

The bushings will go into vertical-turbine pumps that supply seawater to a petrochemical plant for cooling purposes.

The order for suction, line-shaft, and pump-bowl bushings is made up of bushings of significant size, with outside diameters ranging from 170 to 230 mm, inside diameters from 135 to 180 mm, and lengths from 180 to 240 mm.

“Vesconite Bearings has significant experience in providing pump bushings that come into contact with sea water,” describes pump application expert Phillip de Villiers.

“Our pump parts are widely used in desalination and sea-water-cooled plants,” he explains.

Vesconite Hilube bushings survive well in salt water and, unlike metal bearings, do not corrode.

In addition, they do not swell and can be machined for close clearances, which reduces vibration and improves pump efficiencies.

Cooling with the use of seawater is popular in coastal areas since it eliminates the use of scarce fresh water.

It is regarded as a sustainable technology, since there is typically no contact between the water and contaminants and the water can be released back into the sea with only a slight change in temperature being observed.