Problem solver
26 Nov 2013
General Waters UK has employed the use of mag drive pumps to help a semiconductor manufacturing plant in Newport, South Wales combat seal leakages.
The pumps were provided by Michael Smith Engineering who assisted General Waters UK in securing a safer environment at the manufacturing facility.
However, at such a facility waste acids and alkalis are among the unavoidable by-products which are generated in the manufacturing process and these liquids require treatment prior to them being discharged from the manufacturing site in order to comply with emissions laws and regulations.
The problem:
Previously at the plant, mechanically sealed centrifugal pumps were being used to transfer the waste acids and alkalis into a treatment system.
However, regular problems were occurring with seal leakages resulting in excessive down-time, regular and expensive repair bills, along with the associated clean-up costs of the spillages.
The solution:
General Waters UK selected M Pumps magnetically coupled centrifugal model C MAG-P100 in PVDF from Michael Smith Engineers to assist the semiconductor manufacturer in meeting their regulatory targets and create a safer working environment.
The result:
The combination of the magnetically coupled design and PVDF pump head helped ensure optimum corrosion resistance and effective containment of the waste acids and alkalis.
As there are now no seals to fail, leak-free pumping is assured and consequently the manufacturing plant benefits from reduced chemical and environmental hazards. The extended pump operation between servicing also means reduced downtime.
General Waters UK engineer Gareth Scully said: “We installed these pumps into our effluent treatment system for pumping effluent dilute acidic waste, replacing mechanical seal pumps and have found them to be very effective and reliable.”
These compact, close-coupled pumps are designed for handling flow rates up to 140 mc/hr, at heads up to 44 metres and maximum system pressures of 6 bar.
According to Michael Smith Engineers, they are suitable for liquids with maximum viscosity of 200 cSt and can operate at temperatures from -30ºC to +90ºC.