Pressure damper diverging labyrinth seals with circumferential partitions, and method of sealing

Abstract

A damper seal (10) and method of sealing and damping a rotating shaft (12) is provided with a stator housing (14) and at least two sealing blades, an upstream sealing blade (16) and a downstream sealing blade (18). There are at least two partitioning walls (20) disposed between the sealing blades (16,18) and attached to the stator housing (14). The clearance between the downstream sealing blade (18) and the shaft (12) is greater than the clearance between the upstream sealing blade (16) and the shaft (12). The damper seal (10) restricts the flow of fluid from regions along the shaft that are at different pressures and damps vibratory or whirl motion of the shaft.