Limitorque Fluid Power Systems (LFPS)

Limitorque Fluid Power Systems (LFPS) is the Flowserve Limitorque division that builds fluid power actuators, specifically pneumatic, gas, and hydraulic scotch yoke design cylinder valve actuators. These are used on larger, higher torque requirement valves primarily applied in the oil and gas industries.

GAS POWERED ACTUATORS

The Limitorque LDG direct gas actuator is designed to operate on high pressure pneumatic supply, including pipeline gases, nitrogen and any other equivalent high pressure source. Based on Limitorque’s high efficiency scotch-yoke modules, the self-contained system includes both the gas powered actuation unit and the high pressure gas control circuit. This makes it a robust and efficient way of providing reliable pipeline valve automation, even when no external motive power supplies are present. Limitorque’s advanced design criteria together with the full pressure rated controls allow higher torque output within a smaller dimensional envelope, thus reducing gas use and exhaust, and limiting pipeline product waste and environmental impact.

HYDRAULIC ACTUATORS

LHS and LHH are Limitorque’s range of hydraulic, quarter-turn, scotch yoke actuators. Designed to meet or exceed the most current and stringent safety and reliability standards for application in the oil and gas industry LHS and LHH are suitable for on/off and modulating control of all quarter-turn valves. Limitorque scotch yoke actuators deliver reliable torque ranges up to 300 kNm (221 268 ft-lb) in a low displacement, compact dimensional envelope with a maximum allowable working pressure (MAWP) of 207 barg (3000 psig) for the LHS series and 345 barg (5000 psig) for the LHH series.

PNEUMATIC ACTUATORS

Limitorque’s LPS and LPC are pneumatic quarter turn scotch yoke actuators, featuring a robust design suitable for heavy duty services, and among the longest design lifespans and maintenance intervals in the industry. Limitorque’s high torque LPS (up to 500000 Nm / 369,000 ft-lbs) and compact LPC (up to 5500 Nm / 4056 ft-lb) are the actuators of choice for effective on/off, modulating and control applications of quarter-turn valves in all general and protective services, in the most severe environments.

For more information on Limitorque Fluid Power Systems, contact Mead O'Brien by visiting https://meadobrien.com or calling (800) 892-2769

Why Is Monitoring the Amount of Moisture in a Steam System So Critically Important?

Wet steam is a costly problem across many industries. It causes product quality issues with batch rejection, wet packs and wet loads in sterilizers. Wet culinary steam can make food grade quality of product impossible. Carbon dioxide in a system with wet steam creates carbonic acid that damages pipes. A slug of water causes water hammering, which is destructive and can be deadly. Wet steam causes many flowmeters to be inaccurate, so that if you buy steam from a third party, you may be paying for water rather than steam. Water abrades like sand in a steam pipe and will erode pipes, elbows, valves and other components. Wet steam reduces heat transfer. Wet steam can damage turbines. And wet steam causes thermal stress as condensate cools down.

In fact, steam quality typically refers to the amount of water in the steam, which is also known as dryness fraction. Saturated steam is a mixture of steam and water. The water is often in the form of un-vaporized micro droplets. Dryness fraction is a ratio. The mass of the steam to the mass of the biphasic mixture of water and steam. Part of the difficulty in measuring the steam dryness fraction is that steam systems are dynamic. The steams is moving through the components and conditions change second-by-second. Within this complex system there are many things that contribute to water in the steam. For example, the bursting bubbles from the surface of the boiling water expels small droplets into the flow of steam. Or if there is a sudden increase in demand for steam that reduces pressure above the water, lowering the boiling point and increasing the violence of bubbling. This is sometimes called priming or carryover. Other forms of carryover include water in the system, because the water level in the boiler is too high. Or high concentrations of impurities in the boiler water that reduce the surface tension and so increase the agitation of the water surface. Impurities can also cause the formation of a stable foam above the water surface. This foam causes slugs of water to be intermittently discharged from the boiler along with the steam. Even poor insulation in pipes and valves leads to water in the steam as heat is lost and steam condenses. A steam trap might fail closed, particularly at the bottom of a separator, increasing the amount of condensate in the pipes. The design of steam pipe work and steam traps may be inadequate to handle condensate, or a steam separator may be defective.

Armstrong Steam QM-1

Any of these things individually or in combination can cause a problem with dryness fraction. Monitoring the dryness fraction of steam has long been a manual process, time-consuming, inconsistent, unreliable, and presents inherent safety and accuracy risks. Control of your steam quality depends on having consistent, accurate, timely information, and that's where the Armstrong Steam QM-1 comes in.

The Armstrong steam quality monitor steam QM1 provides you with data logging and remote monitoring capabilities. The Steam QM-1 monitors and measures dryness fraction and alerts you of steam quality problems. The video below explains how.

With monitoring by the Steam QM-1 you can:

• Manage process quality when injecting steam 
• Ensure foodgrade quality of steam when producing culinary steam 
• Check dryness of outsource steam 
• Avoid water hammer 
• Oversee traps and separators effectiveness 
• Monitor boiler carryover 
• Avoid erosion in valves regulators etc 
• Protect turbine low pressure saturated steam stages 

For more information contact Mead O'Brien by visiting https://meadobrien.com or by calling (800) 892-2769.

Happy 4th of July from Mead O'Brien

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. 

The Declaration of Independence July 4, 1776