Seal Stack Assembly Using Support Rings for Extreme Pressure
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Seal stack assemblies in industrial applications face failure due to excessive pressures, which cause damage and leakage, especially in extreme operating conditions such as subsea environments, where traditional seals fail to withstand high stresses.
Innovation Solution
The introduction of a seal stack assembly design that incorporates support rings between the seal retainers and lipseals, which are made from resilient metallic materials like Inconel or Elgiloy, allowing the lipseals to expand and conform to the support rings, reducing stress concentrations and preventing wear and failure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional seals are used in high-pressure applications, then the seal stack assembly can be simpler in structure, but the seals fail under extreme pressures exceeding a certain threshold
Solution Approach 1:
The seal stack assembly is divided into multiple seal components arranged in series, where each seal handles a portion of the total pressure load. This segmentation prevents any single seal from experiencing excessive stress that would cause failure, while maintaining overall pressure resistance of the assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
Intermediary structures such as support rings and retainers are introduced between the seals and the high-pressure environment. These intermediaries distribute and redirect pressure forces, protecting the seal components from direct exposure to extreme pressures that would cause failure.
2Adaptability or versatility
If seal stack assembly is used to compensate for articulation and deformation, then the seal can adapt to relative movement, but pressures exceeding a threshold cause damage and failure
Solution Approach 1:
The seal stack assembly incorporates dynamic elements that allow the seals to move and deform in response to articulation and relative movement between components. This adaptability is achieved through flexible seal materials and movable retainer structures that maintain sealing contact while accommodating motion.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple seal segments work together to provide both adaptability to movement and resistance to pressure. Each seal in the stack can independently deform to accommodate articulation while the collective arrangement distributes pressure loads to prevent any single seal from failing under extreme conditions.
3Duration of action of stationary object
If support rings are added to reduce stress on lipseals, then the lifespan of the seal stack is extended, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
Support rings are introduced as intermediary structural elements between the retainers and the lipseals. These support rings act as mediators that distribute and reduce stress concentrations on the lipseals, preventing premature wear and failure, thereby extending the lifespan of the entire seal stack assembly.
Solution Approach 2:
The support rings provide beforehand cushioning by distributing pressure loads before they reach the lipseals. This preventive stress distribution protects the lipseals from excessive wear and damage, extending their service life without requiring complex active control systems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design significantly reduces stress on the lipseals, preventing wear and failure, and extends the lifespan of the seal stack by distributing pressure more evenly, ensuring a reliable radial seal in high-pressure applications.
Implementation Method 1
allowing the lipseals to expand and conform to the support rings, reducing stress concentrations and preventing wear and failure
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods include providing an annular seal stack for an assembly. The seal stack is disposed within an annulus formed between a probe and a housing of the assembly and configured to provide a radial seal between the probe and the housing. The seal stack includes a first support retainer, a first lipseal, a first seal support system comprising at least one support ring disposed between the first support retainer and the first lipseal, a second support retainer configured to support the first lipseal, a second lipseal, a second seal support system comprising at least one support ring disposed between the second support retainer and the second lipseal, and a third support retainer configured to support the second lipseal.