A Multiphysics Sealing Mechanism Model of Rotary Lip Seals under Mixed Lubricating Conditions Considering the Effects of the Meniscus

Lip seals are one kind of the most widely used rotary seals. Most of the published researches on sealing mechanism cannot describe the mixed lubrication conditions of the sealing zone precisely. In especial, the sealing zone is always assumed to be fall of fluid, resulting in effects of the meniscus and the varying lubricating conditions are neglected. Furthermore, the multiphysics issue is also not handled well up to the present. Hence, a multiphysics sealing mechanism model of rotary lip seals under mixed lubricating conditions is proposed in this paper. Surface tension theory is introduced to determine the location and the surface tension of the ingested meniscus. The fluid–thermal–structural coupling relationship is also considered. The multiphysics coupling issue is handled by iteration method. The proposed model is validated by comparing the simulation results to experimental observations. The effects of the shaft speed and sealing lip roughness on the seal performance are numerically analyzed based on the proposed model.