Rotary shaft sealing assembly

Patent · Tue Sep 21 00:00:00 EDT 2010

OSTI ID:1014676

Dietle, Lannie L ^[1]; Schroeder, John E ^[2]; Kalsi, Manmohan S ^[1]; Alvarez, Patricio D ^[2]

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1. Houston, TX
2. Richmond, TX

A rotary shaft sealing assembly in which a first fluid is partitioned from a second fluid in a housing assembly having a rotary shaft located at least partially within. In one embodiment a lip seal is lubricated and flushed with a pressure-generating seal ring preferably having an angled diverting feature. The pressure-generating seal ring and a hydrodynamic seal may be used to define a lubricant-filled region with each of the seals having hydrodynamic inlets facing the lubricant-filled region. Another aspect of the sealing assembly is having a seal to contain pressurized lubricant while withstanding high rotary speeds. Another rotary shaft sealing assembly embodiment includes a lubricant supply providing a lubricant at an elevated pressure to a region between a lip seal and a hydrodynamic seal with a flow control regulating the flow of lubricant past the lip seal. The hydrodynamic seal may include an energizer element having a modulus of elasticity greater than the modulus of elasticity of a sealing lip of the hydrodynamic seal.

• Research Organization: Kalsi Engineering, Inc. (Sugar Land, TX)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC03-90ER80939
• Assignee: Kalsi Engineering, Inc. (Sugar Land, TX)
• Patent Number(s): 7,798,496
• Application Number: US Patent Application 10/982,821
• OSTI ID: 1014676
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English