Method and apparatus for the facilitating the servicing of drive-shaft assemblies for pressurized vessels
AssigneeAhlstrom Machinery Inc.
InventorsJ. Robert Prough, William A. Kerpka, John F. Bolles
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Apparatus and a method allow shaft packings and bearing assemblies to be serviced for a shaft penetrating a pressurized vessel without requiring the vessel to be emptied.
Claims21
Apparatus for preventing fluid leakage from a vessel having a shaft penetrating the vessel during servicing of shaft components, comprising:
- a first bearing surface that is substantially stationary with respect to said vessel;
- a second bearing surface mounted to and movable with said shaft, and during normal operation of said shaft is spaced from said first bearing surface;
- said first and second bearing surfaces operatively located closer to said vessel than the shaft components to be serviced;
- and
- a shaft support structure for supporting said shaft to allow servicing of the shaft components, said shaft support structure engaging said shaft when stationary and moving at least part of said shaft with respect to said vessel so that said first and second bearing surfaces come into substantially liquid-tight sealing engagement with each other, allowing servicing of the shaft components without emptying said vessel.
A shaft assembly comprising:
- a shaft having an axis of elongation, a first end, a second end, and a ledge between said first and second ends;
- a packing, including a packing gland, mounted on said shaft spaced from said first end thereof, and closer to said first end than is said ledge;
- at least one ledge engaging element engaging said ledge and closer to said second end than is said packing gland;
- and
- a plurality of removable fasteners operatively connected to said at least one ledge engaging element and capable of connecting said element to a stationary surface and drawing said element, and said shaft, toward the stationary surface;
- said packing gland and said at least one ledge engaging element being positioned, shaped and dimensioned so that said packing gland can be moved away from said packing, toward said shaft second end, without interference by said at least one ledge engaging element, so that said packing may be serviced.
A method of servicing shaft components, including at least one of a bearing assembly and a sealing assembly, of a vessel having fluent material in an interior thereof, the shaft penetrating the vessel and moveable with respect to the vessel to act on the fluent material within the vessel, comprising the steps of substantially sequentially:
- (a) terminating the fluent material acting movement of the shaft with respect to the vessel;
- (b) providing a shaft support structure engaging said shaft;
- (c) creating a substantially fluent material-tight seal between the shaft and the vessel by using said shaft support structure to move at least part of said shaft, the seal being between the interior of the vessel and the shaft components to be serviced;
- (d) while the seal is maintained, servicing the shaft components, including at least one of a bearing assembly and a sealing assembly, without emptying the fluent material from the vessel;
- and
- (e) releasing the substantially fluent material-tight seal and initiating fluent material acting movement of the shaft.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.