Enhanced understanding of leakage in mechanical seals with elliptical dimples based on CFD simulation

Abstract

Purpose The shapes of surface textures have been designed to control the leakage of mechanical seals in recent years. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the influence of geometric properties of elliptical dimples on the leakage rate. Design/methodology/approach A new geometric feature point is expressed using an analytical solution to locate the high-pressure zones. Furthermore, a numerical model of the three-dimensional flow field for the mechanical seal with elliptical dimples is developed using ANSYS Fluent to demonstrate the influencing mechanism. Findings The location of the proposed geometric converging point coincides with the maximum pressure point under different orientation angles. An inward flow on the leakage section observed from the simulation results is responsible for decreasing the leakage rate. Originality/value The influencing mechanism of the elliptical dimple on the leakage rate is demonstrated, which can facilitate the design of surface textures.

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“…Figure 17c-f shows the streamline on this plane, and Figure 17b shows the streamline on the plane at z = −2 µm. The streamlines converge radially in the area near the cavitation, which results in a suction effect [36]. Meanwhile, the streamlines diverge radially near the high-pressure zone, pushing the lubricating oil outward.…”

An Analytical And Experimental Parametric Study of Texturing In Slider Bearings Under Hydrodynamic/Mixed Lubrication

“…It has been proved that many parameters have significant effects on the texture performance within hydrodynamic/mixed lubrication regime. It mainly includes [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20]: (1) operating parameters, such as sliding speed, inlet and outlet pressure, and environmental temperature; (2) lubricant parameters, such as viscosity, density, and cavitation pressure; and (3) texture design parameters, such as texture shape, dimple size, dimple density, depth over diameter ratio, dimple orientation, dimple arrangement, and texture location.…”