Heat Transfer In Mechanical Seals

Abstract

Numerous studies have shown that mechanical seal reliability is related to the state of the fluid between the seal faces. In turn, the fluid state depends on the seal face temperature. Unfortunately, calculating the seal face temperature has required complex and time consuming calculations such as the finite element method. A method of estimating the seal face temperature is presented. A closed form analytical solution which considers both convective and conductive heat transfer is given for a simple rectangular seal shape. A heat transfer “efficiency” is defined for this simple shape and presented in chart form. Efficiencies are also presented for more complex seal shapes. The charts are used in examples to calculate seal face temperatures for several configurations and services.