Atomic Energy of Canada Limited

Raymond Metcalfe

Peter Janzen

Ronald G Wensel

An eccentric face seal for rotary machines in which the closing force of the seal faces towards one another is asymmetric. The asymmetric closing force is utilized to produce corresponding variations in the face seal gap which tends to produce fluid flow across the seal face in a direction opposite to the leakage produced by the pressure difference, and thereby eliminate or reduce leakage. Closing forces can be applied by at least a pair of springs providing different compressive forces or by hydraulic actuation in which the total combined forces can readily be made to vary with fluid operating pressure. In one embodiment the hydraulic actuation is provided by asymmetric pressure responsive areas of the rotor or stator.

Eccentric face seal with asymmetric closing force

An improved rotary end face seal assembly used singly or in combination with other seals, preventing escape of a contained pressurized medium, gas or liquid, through the annulus between a stationary housing and a rotating shaft, comprises a rotary assembly and a stationary assembly. One of either the rotary assembly or stationary assembly is axially movable and usually spring mounted. A rotor and stator component of the respective assemblies have sealing faces in close sliding proximity. One of either the rotor or stator is a composite ring comprising an interlocked pair of annular rings, an outermost of which constrains an innermost ring of dissimilar material. A protruding seal face extends axially from this innermost ring or from the mating seal ring of dissimilar material. Support rings for each of the rotor and stator are precisely matched with the corresponding seal ring to achieve precise control of the seal ring deformation. An isolation ring may act as an adaptor to separate a support ring from any given mounting component.

Rotary end face seal assembly

This invention provides non-destructive testing of elongate compressible materials, and particularly to determine the elastodynamic properties of a material, and/or to detect defects such as non-uniformities in resilience or hardness, subsurface as well as surface defects such as inclusions, voids, tears, and the like. The material to be tested is passed between two rollers of substantially contant roller spacing. Measurement of the load provides an indication of elastodynamic properties of the material. Variations in the measured load can be utilized to detect defects in the material. The invention has been found particularly suitable for the testing of material for seals, such as O-rings.

Elastodynamic testing of elongate compressible material

A rotary shaft face seal in which a rotor on the shaft has an annular seal face which is coaxial with the axis of rotation of the shaft while a stator is eccentrically mounted, relative to the shaft axis of rotation, on an eccentric tubular extension of a partition. The stator is slidable on the tubular extension and has an annular-shaped seal face which is also eccentric to the shaft axis of rotation. Compression springs urge the stator to push the annular-shaped seal face against the seal face of the rotor while pressurized fluid is forced by these seal faces. As the rotor rotates the eccentric, annular-shaped seal face of the stator progressively uncovers portions of the seal face, on the rotor, which were previously covered thereby allowing these portions to cool and thereby promoting lubrication of the relatively sliding seal faces.

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Chalk River, Canada

Raymond Metcalfe