DESIGN OF COUPLING ENCLOSURES

by
Michael M. Calistrat
Director of Engineering

Boyce Engineering International, Incorporated

Houston, Texas

and
Robert E. Munyon
Manager, Research and Development

Power rransmission Division

Koppers Company, Incorporated

Baltimore, Maryland

ABSTRACT
Michael M. Calistrat has been Direc­ All flexible shaft couplings must be surrounded by a
tor of Engineering of Boyce Engineering guard, in order to comply with OHSA requirements. For
International, Incorporated, since early turbomachinery applications, this guard is an oil-tight enclo­
1985. He received a Master's Degree in sure and the purpose is to trap any oil escaping the machinery
Mechanical Engineering (1951) from the seals.
University of Bucharest, Romania. He When couplings rotate at high speeds in oil-tight enclo­
has acquired vast experience in the field sures, they shear the air, and this shearing results in a signifi­
of mechanical power transmission. Dur­ cant heat generation. The temperature of the enclosure, as well
ing his eighteen years as Manager of as the coupling, depends on the amount of air shearing and on
Research and Development of the Power the ability of the enclosure to dissipate the heat. Another
Transmission Division of Koppers Com­ problem with couplings operating in oil-tight enclosures is that
pany, Incorporated, he developed several new products, in­ negative pressures are created occasionally in the vicinity of
cluding shaft couplings and special greases, and presented machinery seals, causing oil to be sucked in the enclosure,
numerous papers. Mr. Calistrat has been granted eighteen which is particularly detrimental for gear reducers.
patents. Numerous tests were conducted at Koppers' Power 'frans­
He co-authored the Wear Control Handbook, the Plant mission facilities with various types and sizes of couplings,
Engineering Handbook and the Handbook Series on Lubrica­ operating at various speeds, within enclosures of many config­
tion. He has published articles in technical magazines in the urations. Measurements were taken of the coupling and the
USA, Canada and Europe. As a member of ASME, ASLE and enclosure temperatures, pressures in the enclosures, and the
AST M, he is very active in various committees, and was cooling effect of air flow and oil spray.
Chairman of the International Power Transmission and Gear­ Formulas useful in calculating enclosure temperatures are
ing Conference (Cambridge, Massachusetts, 1984). Before presented. Design guides for fabricating enclosures which
emigrating to the USA, Mr. Calistrat worked in designing operate at acceptable temperatures are also produced. En­
drilling equipment for the Romanian oil fields, including the closures fabricated using these guidelines are successfully
first hydrostatic drive for rotary tables. operating in petrochemical plants.

ARE COUPLING ENCLOSURES NECESSARY?

Robert E. Munyon is the Manager of A coupling enclosure is defined as a cylindrical container
Research and Development for the Pow­ whose main function is to capture the oil used to lubricate
er Transmission Division of Koppers couplings, and the oil that escapes from machinery seals and to
Company, Incorporated. He is responsi­ return this oil to the reservoir. A coupling enclosure is also a
ble for improving existing product lines guard, which must be used on all couplings for compliance with
and developing new coupling products. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regu­
Prior to this assignment, he had been lations. To satisfy its main purpose, a coupling enclosure must
Engineering Section Manager, responsi­ be oil-tight, but not necessarily air-tight. Almost all coupling
ble for the design and development of enclosures are provided with a breather.
high performance gear, diaphragm and When non-lubricated couplings were initially used on
disc couplings. high-speed machinery, attempts were made to replace the
Mr. Munyon received a B. S. degree in Mechanical Engi­ relatively cumbersome enclosure with an open guard. These
neering in 1975 from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in attempts ended in failures, and it is now known that enclosures
Terre Haute, Indiana, and an A. A. degree in Electronics cannot be eliminated. Even if the quantity of oil leaking past
Technology in 1983. the seals is minimal, an installation might lose all of its oil over
a period of time. The resulting oil mist surrounding the
machines would then become a fire hazard. Coupling enclo­
sures are also needed because atmospheric dust tends to

51
52
PROCEEDINGS OF THE FOURTEENTH TURBOMACHINERY SYMPOSIUM

accumulate in any crevices of a coupling. A diaphragm cou­

pling in the Middle East became completely rigid after it was
solidly packed with sand! U
With the present technology, coupling enclosures will
continue to be used with all high speed machinery.

WHY ARE COUPLING ENCLOSURES A

"NEW" PROBLEM?
��ll�--------------------� !1�-
Coupling enclosures were successfully used in connection
with oil lubricated couplings for many years. Depending on
their design, some worked better than others, but none were a

Q G
major problem. In most cases, their design was assigned to a
junior engineer.
When the first "dry" couplings were installed in oil tight
n n
enclosures, it was discovered that these enclosures can become
very hot. It also became evident that the oil flow to the gear Figure 1. Air Flow in Enclosures.
type couplings had not only lubricated the coupling, but also
cooled it. Hence, the oil lines were reconnected and dry coupling can be estimated. The following equations, based on
couplings were being cooled with an oil spray. The manufactur­ experimental results, are being suggested: (Note: All dimen­
ers of dry couplings then rushed back to the drawing board to sions are in inches, all temperatures are in F�)
study the heat problem and how to eliminate it.

HOW IS HEAT GENERATED IN

(1)
AN ENCLOSURE?
Until dry couplings were installed in oil tight enclosures, where:
it was believed that heat was generated by the friction between Tc = Coupling temperature
the gear coupling teeth. Recent tests [1] have shown that this
T. = Ambient temperature
friction is very small and it would account only for a few
degrees of the total temperature rise.
During the last four years, numerous tests have been
T,

K1=
(
Shaft temperature
Enclosure Diameter 0·27 )
conducted in the Research Laboratories of Koppers' Power Maximum Cooling Diameter (2)
'fransmission Division, with a variety of couplings at various
conditions. Based on the results obtained, the following expla­
nation is being offered for the heat generated in coupling (3)
enclosures.

Heat Generated by Air Shearing K3 =

( Maximum Coupling Diameter 0·2 )
Minimum Coupling Diameter (4)
The air in an enclosure is contained in an annular cylinder,
with the outer diameter (OD) equal to the enclosure diameter, (5)
the inner diameter (ID) equal to the coupling's diameter, and a
length equal to that of the enclosure. While the OD of this
annular cylinder is stationary, the ID rotates with the coupling. K1 is a function of the ratio between the enclosure and
A short time after startup, the air in the enclosure also starts coupling diameters. This coefficient does not influence the
rotating. The velocity of this rotation is variable, with max­ temperature directly; rather, it modifies the influence on tem­
imum velocity in the vicinity of the coupling and the minimum perature of the rotational speed. It was shown previously that
in the vicinity of the enclosure. Hence, friction occurs between the temperature generated by air shearing is a function of the
velocity gradient across the gap between the coupling and
adjacent layers of air and this friction generates heat.
enclosure. Hence, the heat depends both on the speed and on
Heat Generated by Air Turbulence the gap size. Two extremes are possible:
With few exceptions, the three elements of a coupling (two • If the enclosure is very large, the exponent for the
flexing elements and one spacer) have dissimilar diameters. rotational speed becomes very small, i.e., the speed has little
The spacer is smaller in diameter than the rest of the coupling, influence on temperature.
being particularly evident with diaphragm type couplings (Fig­ • If the enclosure is only slightly larger than the coup­
ure 1). Due to the friction between the air and the face of the ling, K1= 1 and the speed has a significant influence on the
disks, a circular motion is generated, and this motion generates temperature.
additional heat. K2 is a coefficient which accounts for the influence of the
Turbulence is also generated by the heads of bolts and nuts coupling's surface area (larger the area, more friction with the
connecting the various components of the coupling. A well air), and for the peripheral velocity. One should note that
designed coupling incorporates shrouds over bolt heads and rotational speed, rather than velocity, was entered in Equation
nuts, particularly those which are placed at large diameters. 1. The peripheral velocity is a function of the product between
the rotational speed and the diameter. This fact explains the
large exponent for D in Equation 3. As the components of a
PREDICTING COUPLING TEMPERATURE,
coupling have various diameters and length, Equation 3 enters
WITHOUT COOLING the sum of individual influences.
When a high speed drive is retrofitted from an oil lubri­ K3 is a coefficient which accounts for the influence of the
cated coupling to a dry coupling, the temperature of the new air circulation generated by the coupling's geometry (Figure 1).
 53
DESIGN OF COUPLING ENCLOSURES

Coefficient K4 accounts for the air flow in and out of the

enclosure. For enclosures without provisions for air circula­ 4.(21
tions, the value of � is constant.
Finally, the coupling's temperature depends on the heat 3.5
received (or dissipated) from the ambient air outside the
enclosure (TJ, and from the shaft (T.). As the temperature of 3.(21
the shaft cannot be easily measured, it is suggested that the oil
temperature, as it exits the bearings, be used for T 2.5
K5
•.

2.(21
DISSIPATING THE HEAT

Radiation 1.5

The heat generated within the enclosure is normally 1. r2l

dissipated by its outside surface into the surrounding air. To
increase this dissipation common engineering sense should be • 5
used:
Increase the surface area, either by making the enclo­
•

.1 .2 .3 .4 .5 .s 7 .s .s 1.(21
sure large, or by adding radiating fins. .

Allow air circulation over the enclosure.

•

OIL FLOW <GPMl

Shade the enclosure from exposure to the sun or from
•

other hot components, such as turbine exhausts and steam Figure 2. Oil Spray Cooling.
lines.
Sizing the Air Ports
Oil Cooling
The exhaust port should be tangential to the enclosure's
If the enclosure cannot be modified, and its temperature is outside diameter and directed with the coupling rotation, as
unacceptably high, spraying the coupling or the inside surface shown in Figure 3. This port (or ports) can have any profile;
of the enclosure with oil will dissipate additional heat. however, a tubular port is the most convenient to use. The
To determine the temperature drop that can be obtained larger the port, in comparison with the enclosure, the lower
with oil cooling, the following equations are suggested: the enclosure's temperature. A large exhaust port, on the other
hand, can create problems in separating the oil from the air.
(6)

(7)

where
K5 is an experimental coefficient, found in Figure 2
Te is the enclosure's temperature
T is the cooling oil temperature
0

Td is the drop in temperature (percent)

Example: The measured enclosure temperature is 220°F, and
0.3 gpm oil at ll0°F is sprayed on each end of the coupling.
The coupling temperature, before oil spraying, is:

(8)

From Figure 2, K5=3.5. The temperature drop with oil

spraying would be:

Td=3.5 (f1248-ll0)=41 percent (9)

The enclosure temperature, with oil cooling, would be:

(10)

Air Cooling AIR 0. OIL

If the air heated by friction is allowed to escape from the OUT
enclosure, and if outside air is allowed to replace the heated air,
Figure 3. Exhaust Port.
the enclosure's temperature can be significantly reduced. How­
ever, venting the air out of the enclosure could create the
problem of oil mist escaping into the atmosphere. Through For enclosures with air cooling, Equation 1 can be rewrit­
proper enclosure design, this problem can be eliminated. ten as:
The following items must be considered when designing
an enclosure with air cooling:
• sizing the air ports
• separating the oil from the air
• avoiding negative pressures Kr, K2, and K3 are the same as before; however,
54
PROCEEDINGS OF THE FOURTEENTH TURBOMACHINERY SYMPOSIUM

1 enclosure skin area

� = __ ( )
1000 exhaust port cross-section (12)

While� cannot have a value larger than 0.6 (in case of no air
f low), a properly designed enclosure will have �=0.1 to 0.2.
The enclosure skin area is:

(13)

where
De= enclosure diameter
Le=enclosure length
Note that the rotational speed has a larger influence on
temperature when the enclosure is air cooled than when no air
circulation is permitted. The larger exponent for speed can be
explained by the fact that a vented enclosure acts to some
extent as an inefficient blower. However, considering the
significant reduction in the value of K4, the increase in the
influence of rotational speed is not very important.
The intake and exhaust ports should be placed so that no
"dead zone" is left in the enclosure. Hence, if one exhaust port
is placed in the middle of the enclosure's length, one intake
port should be used at each end of the enclosure. Conversely, if Figure 4. Tangential Intake Port.
two exhaust ports are used (this is desirable for enclosures
longer than 36 in), then one intake port should be placed half­
way between the exhaust ports.
The total intake port area should be half the total exhaust
area. For example, if one exhaust port of 3 in diameter is used,
each of the two intake ports should be 1.5 in in diameter.

Separating the Oil from the Air

The amount of oil that escapes past a seal is usually very
small. Some compressor manufacturers, however, decided to
eliminate the seals completely and to recapture the bearing oil
from the coupling enclosure rather than from the compressor
housing. It is therefore possible that flowrates of up to 3 gpm
are still flowing into the enclosure, even when the couplings
are non-lubricated. This is hot oil and does not provide cooling.
To prevent this oil from becoming a mist, many enclosures
rely on the centrifugal effect created by the rotation of the air,
similar to the working of a cyclone separator. One way to help
the air rotation is to install the intake ports tangentially to the
enclosure, as shown in Figure 4. Another way to prevent the
formation of oil mist is to shorten the residency in the enclo­
sure of any oil particle. A baffle should be installed, oil tight,
along the enclosure, over the exit port, as shown in Figure 5.
This baffle will force the oil out of the enclosure and prevent it
from rotating more than one revolution before exiting.
The actual separation between air and oil is done outside
the enclosure, as shown in Figure 6. All ports should have Figure 5. Oil Baffle at Exhaust Port.
breather caps, provided with a coarse wire mesh filter.

Avoiding Negative Pressures

normal air inlet port, rather than instead of it. If this tube does
not eliminate the oil loss, then this tube should be connected
When large diameter disks are mounted on shafts in the to a positive pressure area of the enclosure, usually over the
vicinity of the seals, their rotation generates a negative pres­ largest rotating part, as indicated in Figure 8.
sure, which causes oil to be sucked out from the machine
housing into the coupling enclosure. This phenomenon is
BASIC ENCLOSURE DESIGN FEATURES
particularly detrimental to gear boxes, which have an indepen­
dent oil supply. As couplings are mounted closer and closer to Usually, coupling enclosures are cylindrical and split on a
the bearings (in order to reduce the overhung moment), the diametral plane. The two half cylinders are connected by
problem of oil being lost into the enclosure is encountered bolted flanges. A few basic design rules should be followed:
more often. • A coupling enclosure should be free to float at both
To avoid this problem, an air tube can be installed close to ends. The authors have seen enclosures bolted to one machine
the coupling, as shown in Figure 7. This tube allows atmo­ and free to move axially at the other end. Such a design allows
spheric pressure near the seal and cancels the negative pres­ for axial motion between machines, but the enclosure is rigid
sures. Preferably, this air tube should be in addition to the with respect to offset motions.
 55
DESIGN OF COUPLING ENCLOSURES

CONNECT WITH HOSE

TO THE TUBE OF
FIGURE 6.

OIL lOUT
Figure 6. Separation of Oil from Air.

Figure 8. Means· for Pressurizing the Seal Area.

UPPER ENCLOSURE
HALF

TOP
COUPLING

MACHINE
HOUSING

\__ BOTTOM

LOWER ENCLOSURE Figure 9. Seals for Enclosure Flanges.

HALF

Figure 7. Compensation of Negative Pressures.

[J--J
• A coupling enclosure should be oil-tight. Even though
all enclosures are welded construction, oil still leaks out,
usually at the flanges. Gaskets and caulking seldom can stop
the leaks. A simple design, shown in Figure 9, can help
eliminate these leaks.
• Breathers are required on enclosures in order to prevent
the formation of an "oil plug" and to prevent the possibility of
filling the enclosure with oil. Breathers should be designed so
that oil cannot escape. In designing the enclosure, the direc­
tion of rotation of the coupling should be considered. A baffle
should prevent the air from flowing out through the breather,
as shown in Figure 10. Figure 10. Baffle of Intake Port.
56
PROCEEDINGS OF THE FOURTEENTH TURBOMACHINERY SYMPOSIUM

EXPERIMENTAL WORK differs from test results (Figure 13), when a single diaphragm
coupling with 34 in shaft separation was used in two different
Tests were conducted over the last four years on gear,
enclosures, having 20 in and 23 in diameters. It can be seen
single diaphragm, and disk-pack couplings designed for 1 V2 in,
that the Bendix equation is very accurate at 5000 cpm, but that
2 in and 4 in diameter shafts. Tests were performed, with and
the exponent for the rotating speed seems to be too large. On
without cooling, at speeds varying between 3000 and 16,000
the other hand, the enclosure's diameter has a larger influence
cpm. The equations presented herein are based on the test
than the one resulting from the Bendix formula. When the
results obtained. These equations reproduce the test results
Bendix formula was used for calculating the temperatures of
with an error of ± 6 percent. The results and calculated tem­
gear type, or disk-pack coupling enclosures, the results were
peratures, for two of the couplings which were tested in the
significantly different from measured values, as shown in Fig­
la� oratory, are shown in Figure 11.
ure 14. It is evident that the Bendix equation cannot be used
1- on coupling types other than diaphragm couplings. Enclosures
z
w
.... 2121121 with air cooling have been installed at a few chemical plants
(IJ and performed as predicted.
l: 18121
a:
16121 SIZE 4 DIAPHRAGM COUPLING
w
> WITH 34" LONG ENCLOSURE
0 14121
LEGEND BENDIX FORMULA
(IJ
a: 12121 TEST RESULT
- 28121
LL 1121121 LL
260
•

8121
w w 24121
a: 6121 a:
:::> :::> 22121
1- 1-
a: 4121 a:
a: a: 2121121
w 2121 w
a. a. 18121
l: l:
w w
1- 121 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 91121 11 12 13 141516 1- 16121
(!) 14121
COUPLING SPEED <RPM/1121121121> z
U) 12121
LEGEND (D ---SIZE 4 COUPLING. NO COOLING 5 1121121 _....
.....
�

@ ---SIZE I AMBIENT TEMPERATURE

4 COUPLING. AIR COOLED 8121 <!"'-:;-:;;:-
-------------------------

@ ---SIZE 2 COUPLING, NO COOLING 60

4121
8D ---SIZE 2 COUPLING. AIR COOLED
2121
Figure 11. Test Data.
0 2 4 6 8 1121 12 14
The Bendix Corporation [2] published an equation and a
graph to be used for the calculation of non-cooled enclosure Figure 13. Bendix Formula vs. Test Results: Diaphragm
temperatures (Figure 12). The authors compared their results Coupling.
with those obtained using the Bendix formula. The equation

I !
40G I
I 18121
c.A.'-ISTR,AT LEGEND 0= TEST POINTS
380 CALCULATED
K 1.7x1tr13d5 N3 v
/ ':jj&URE IL, VALUES. BENDIX
=

DoL
@
/
360 r-- '-l> FORMULA
16121
340 r--
d = Diaphragm 0.0. -Ins.
N = Speed·RPM
Lf"!:>�
Do= Guard 0.0. -Ins. v
320 f-- L = Guard Length-Ins. 14121
_...v
300

/ 120 @

I
280
1- ®
260 / z
w 1121121
/ (IJ

I
240
I l:
a: @
• ®
/ I 8121
•

I I
220 ,.,
L w "
THERMAL >
/ EXPANSION 0
200
® CD

'"""'lf"!"
1/ (IJ
a: 6121 @
180

160
,/
"'"8
FLANGE
d
�

1--
LL
.

4121
CD

140 / 1--
w
a: CD
� �� �
,.,_ �···
:::>
v 1-
20 CD
AIN L ATIO 1-- a:

I
120
a:
w

I I t
a.

I I I I
100
l:
1/ w
1- 0 2 4 6 8 1121 12 14

I
80 I I
I I : I
I I I I
!
! I
COUPLING SPEED <RPM/1121121121>
100 200 300 400 500 600 700
-TEMPER-ATU-RE CALCULATIONS FOR COUPLING HOUSINGS -
K FACTOR Figure 14. Bendix Formula vs. Test Results: Gear-type
Figure 12. Bendix Method. Coupling.
 57
DESIGN OF COUPLING ENCLOSURES

CONCLUSIONS design. A non-lubricated coupling should be designed so that it

• Oil tight coupling enclosures are required for collecting generates as little windage as possible.
the oil that escapes past machinery seals.
• Without proper design, or provision for cooling, the REFERENCES
enclosure, and the coupling in particular, can become unac­
ceptably hot. From a safety point of view, the enclosure l. Calistrat, M. M., "Friction Between High Speed Gear Cou­
pling Teeth, " ASME Paper 80-C2/DET-5 (1980).
temperature should not exceed 180°F, but even this limit
might be too high for electronically instrumented couplings. 2. Bendix Corporation, Fluid Power Division, Catalog 67U-6-
• When enclosures cannot be made large enough to pre­ 8211A (1982).
vent the build-up of excessive heat, cooling the enclosure can
be successfully accomplished by oil or air cooling. Oil cooling is
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
easier to implement on existing enclosures, while air cooling
should be considered first when the enclosures are being The authors want to thank Dresser Industries for sharing
designed. their valuable experience on the design of coupling enclosures.
• Methods to cool enclosures were presented; however, Also, many thanks to the Bendix Corporation for allowing us to
the first step in minimizing temperatures lies with the coupling include their method of calculating enclosure temperatures.
58
PROCEEDINGS OF THE FOURTEENTH TURBOMACHINERY SYMPOSIUM