Frictionless sealing operated by pressure medium

For sealing between a stationary first member and a second member coaxially rotatable with respect to said first member, a sealing ring comprising a rotationally symmetric surface zone, said sealing ring being adapted for stationary attachment relative to said first member and elastically deformable at a portion thereof located closest to said second member, said sealing ring including two annular surface portions provided in spaced relationship to each other along said portion, said surface portions during absence of external actuation sealingly abutting the rotationally symmetric surface zone on said second member, said surface portions having between themselves an intermediate annular groove into which open a plurality of channels for supplying a pressure medium to a space defined by said second member and the walls of said annular groove, said supplying of pressure medium building up in said space a pressure such that between each of said annular surface portions and said rotationally symmetric zone on said second member a narrow annular gap is formed through which said pressure medium can leak out to the ambient, and further comprising a plurality of partition walls extending from the bottom of said annular groove up to the level of said annular surface portions and transversely across said annular groove from one annular surface portion to the other, thereby dividing said intermediate annular groove into a corresponding number of groove sections separated from each other, at least one of said channels opening into each such groove section, whereby co-action of said sealing ring with said second member results in each groove section constituting a separate pressure chamber.