Quench is the term used for an arrangement that applies an unpressurised external fluid to amechanical seal's outboard faces. The quench liquid can assume the following tasks:
Absorption/removal of the seal's leakage
Monitoring of the mechanical seal's leakage rate
Lubrication/cooling of the stand-by seal
Exclusion of air: prevents the leakage from reacting with the atmosphere (e. g. crystallisation of the leaking fluid)
Dry running protection
The quench fluid is sealed via throttling bushes, preliminary gland packings, radial shaft seal rings, lip seals or mechanical seals (also seeShaft seals). See Fig. 1 Quench: Two mechanical seals in tandem arrangement
