Trelleborg Sealing Solutions is unveiling its new “next generation” seal – the Multi-Contact Turcon Variseal – at the ONS in Stavanger hits week.
The Multi-Contact Turcon Variseal from Trelleborg Sealing Solutions has been developed to replace multiple chevron seals or V-stack type products in subsea valve stems requiring a high-integrity sealing capability. It includes a series of single-acting spring-energized seals housed within a U-shaped Turcon polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) based material seal profile.
Image: Andrew Longdon with a multi-contact Trucon Variseal. Image from Trelleborg.
The seal is designed to provide integrated redundancy, helping to extend the flex life of seals in high-pressure applications while providing better performance and lower operator costs. With the addition of anti-extrusion devices, the Multi-Contact Turcon Variseal can withstand pressures of up to 207 MPa/ 30,000 psi, says Trelleborg.
Stuart Moares, Product Line Director at Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, said: “We believe this innovative product represents the next generation in sealing. The unique single-piece design significantly improves sealing integrity and leak tightness in high-pressure applications by providing higher contact force across multiple seal hardware interfaces.”
He added: “Subsea valves can remain in one position for months or potentially years – however during intervention activities or workovers, when operators need to change the state of the valve, they need the seal to perform perfectly – first and every time. Due to stick-slip issues, elastomer contact seals can potentially be destroyed at startup. We would therefore always recommend an energised PTFE-based seal.
“The Multi-Contact Turcon Variseal is immune to stick-slip after long periods of inactivity. This avoids seal damage that can lead to valve leakage, which can cause environmental contamination and expensive asset recovery along with the associated overhaul costs and production disruption.”
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