Abstract: A 3D thermo-elasto-hydrodynamic (TEHD) model is presented to study the effects of triangular dimples on the load-carrying capacity, leakage and friction of a mechanical seal operated under mixed or full film lubrication conditions. The model is solved by the finite element method (FEM), which takes into account the effects of the Jakobsson-Floberg-Olsson (JFO) cavitation boundary condition, surface roughness, elastic-plastic contact, thermo-elastic deformation, and the temperature-viscosity relation. The numerical results of the TEHD model are quite different from those of the hydrodynamic (HD) and thermo-hydrodynamic (THD) models, especially at high speeds. In order to obtain the optimum shape and distribution of the triangular dimples, a comparative study is conducted to investigate different distributions of equilateral triangles and isosceles right triangles. The results show that a surface textured mechanical seal with isosceles right triangular dimples has the most significant hydrodynamic and pumping effects which, in turn, are beneficial to sealing face opening behavior and leakage limitation. The theoretical results are in good agreement with the experimental ones, and offer new guidance for the future design and development of high-speed mechanical seals for aviation piston pumps.

Key words: Thermo-elasto-hydrodynamic (TEHD); Mechanical seal; Surface texturing; Triangular dimple; Aviation piston pump

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