2013 Buyers' Guide 2013 Buyers' Guide - Filtration News

Absorbents | Adsorbents
Removing Water from Petroleum
with Super Absorbent Polymers
By Erin L. Johnson, Gelok International
F
or years, society has
been taught the benefits
of water to support
life and to sustain
processes. However, for any
number of industries that depend
on the consumption
and use of hydrocarbon fluids,
water is an ever-present
nemesis. But why is controlling
water such an essential
consideration According to a
Machinery Lubrication news
article by Martin Williamson,
the evil effects of water are
many.
Water can:
•Cause contamination of
the oil’s base stock, encouraging
oxidation, viscosity increase
and foaming
•Affect the additive package through
water washing and hydrolysis,
leading to acids and additive
depletion
•Encourage rust and corrosion
•Cause increased wear as a result of
aeration, changes in viscosity
resulting in film strength failure,
hydrogen blistering and
embrittlement, and vaporous
cavitation
•Generate other contaminants in the
oil such as waxes, suspensions,
carbon and oxide insolubles and
even micro-organisms
Mr. Williamson suggests that systemic
water contamination control is
available utilizing one or several of the
following five separation techniques
shown in Table 1.
Consequently, a series of innovative
adjacent markets and manufactures have
taken action to create products that mitigate
the presence of water in hydrocarbon
fluids. Gelok International
Corporation is one such player. Since the
mid 1980’s, the company has been a premier
manufacturer of thin, low-dusting,
super absorbent laminates and composites
suitable for the polymer absorption
technique specified in the table above.
Their custom designs contain super absorbent
polymers, which have been impregnated
between layers of cellulosic
substrate resulting in an absorbent, roll
good media:
Gelok’s roll
products are
ultra-thin and
easily introduced
into conv
e n t i o n a l
spin-on or cartridge
type filters
via co-pleating
with other filtration
media.
Gelok laminate
The
20 • August 2012 • www.filtnews.com
Table 1
benefits of using Gelok laminates include:
• Extraordinarily thin profile
• Customizable substrate selections
• Customizable SAP loading values
• Wide absorbency performance
range (100-1500 g/sq ft)
• Light weight input resulting in a
compact end product
• Provide excellent wicking direct
to core
• Consistent finished product profile
• Easy-to-use commercial roll good form
• Low start-up costs