US 4,732,396 A · Apparatus and method for sealing a rotating shaft

Abstract

An apparatus and method for forming a fluid-tight seal at an aperture where a rotatable shaft passes through a barrier into a barred fluid. A mechanical seal is mounted on the rotatable shaft. A stationary portion of the mechanical seal is elastomerically joined to the barrier by an elastomeric joint to form a substantially fluid-tight chamber bounded by the mechanical seal, the elastomeric joint and the barrier. The stationary portion of the mechanical seal is sealingly positioned adjacent to the rotatable portion of the mechanical seal. The elastomeric joint absorbs relative radial and axial motion between the barrier and the mechanical seal. The chamber is flushed with a flushing fluid. The stationary portion of the mechanical seal is rigidly anchored to the stationary shaft drive housing. The rotatable portion of the mechanical seal is attached to the rotatable shaft at such a distance from a stationary drive shaft housing that the resistance of the shaft to radial deflection is substantially maximum.

Claims17

Dependent claims

An apparatus for forming a seal at an aperture where a rotatable shaft means passes through a barrier means into a barred fluid, and where the rotatable shaft means is rotatable by a shaft drive means contained within a stationary shaft drive means housing, comprising:

mechanical seal means located between said stationary shaft drive means housing and said barrier mean, said mechanical seal means having at least one stationary portion sealingly positioned adjacent to at least one rotatable portion, the rotatable portion being attached to the rotatable shaft means for rotation therewith, and
elastomeric joint means joining the stationary portion of the mechanical seal means to the barrier means thereby forming a substantially fluid-tight chamber bounded by the mechanical seal means, the elastomeric joint means and the barrier means, whereby the elastomeric joint means is adapted to absorb relative radial and axial motion between the barrier means and the rotatable shaft means, and
means for rigidly anchoring the stationary portion to the stationary shaft drive means housing.

A method for forming a seal at an aperture where a rotatable shaft means passes through a barrier means into a barred fluid, and where the rotatable shaft means is rotatable by a shaft drive means contained within a stationary shaft drive means housing, comprising the steps of:

mounting at least one rotatable portion of a mechanical seal means on the rotatable shaft means for rotation therewith at a location between said stationary shaft drive means housing and said barrier means,
sealingly positioning at least one stationary portion of the mechanical seal means adjacent to the rotatable portion, and
elastomerically joining the stationary portion of the mechanical seal means to the barrier means with an elastomeric joint means to form a substantially fluid-tight chamber bounded by the mechanical seal means, the elastomeric joint means and the barrier means whereby the elastomeric joint means is adapted to absorb relative radial and axial motion between the barrier means and the rotatable shaft means,
rigidly anchoring the stationary portion of the mechanical seal means to the stationary shaft drive means housing, and
mounting said rotatable portion of the mechanical seal means on the rotatable shaft means for rotation therewith at such a distance from the stationary shaft drive means housing that the resistance of the rotatable shaft means to radial deflection is substantially at a maximum.

2 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Apparatus and method for sealing a rotating shaft

Life of this patent

Apparatus and method for sealing a rotating shaft

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims17