Brush seal with porous upstream side-plate
AssigneeROLLS-ROYCE plc
InventorsPhilip J. Millener, Timothy M. Edmunds
Life of this patent
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Abstract
In a brush seal adapted for use in disturbed fluid flow conditions the upstream side-plate is formed of porous material or has foraminate region. In conventional seals disturbed flow can generate a flow adjacent the face of the seal bristle pack which tends to lift bristles away from the second sealing element. Seal leakage is consequently increased. The foraminate or porous upstream side-plate reduces disturbing forces on the bristles by modifying flow patterns to avoid forces which lift the bristles.
Claims9
A brush seal for sealing a leakage gap between a rotating member and a relatively stationary member, said gap extending between an upstream, high pressure region and a downstream, low pressure region, the brush seal comprising:
- a mass of bristles packed together in an annular layer between upstream and downstream side-plates, the downstream side-plate being spaced from the rotating member to form a seal gap, the bristles being disposed against the upstream face of said downstream side-plate and laying with a radial component, the bristles having free ends which extend towards a surface of the rotating member to form a seal thereagainst, the upstream side-plate is disposed with its downstream face adjacent the upstream side of the layer and said upstream side-plate includes a foraminate region having a uniformly distributed porous region with a porosity within a range of about 16% to about 40%.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.