Bypass seal for air preheaters
AssigneeAlstom (Switzerland) Ltd
InventorsKurt M. Fierle, Robin B. Rhodes, Charles R. White
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A bypass seal for a rotary regenerative air preheater includes primary and secondary seal leaves that are joined at a single position longitudinally intermediate their first and second sends. The first end portion of the primary seal leaf extends longitudinally beyond the first end of the secondary seal leaf and the second end portion of the secondary seal leaf extends longitudinally beyond the second end of the primary seal leaf. When installed in the air preheater, the first end portion of the primary seal leaf of each bypass seal in one of the seal rings overlaps the second end portion of the secondary seal leaf of an adjacent bypass seal in the seal ring.
Claims19
A rotary regenerative air preheater having a cold end and an oppositely disposed hot end and comprising:
- a substantially circular housing having a radially inner surface;
- a heat exchange rotor rotatably mounted within the housing having axially spaced first and second end portions and a radially outer surface, the first and second end portions of the rotor each having a circumferential sealing surface, the radially outer surface of the rotor and the radially inner surface of the housing defining a gap;
- and
- first and second circumferential bypass seal rings disposed within the gap and sealingly engaging the sealing surface of the first and second end portions of the rotor, respectively, each of the bypass seal rings comprising a plurality of bypass seals, each of the bypass seals including longitudinally extending primary and secondary seal leaves, each of the seal leaves having oppositely disposed first and second ends and first and second end portions, the primary seal leaf of each bypass seal being mounted to the corresponding secondary seal leaf at only a single longitudinal position intermediate the first and second ends of the primary and secondary seal leaves, the first end portion of the primary seal leaf extending longitudinally beyond the first end of the secondary seal leaf and the second end portion of the secondary seal leaf extending longitudinally beyond the second end of the primary seal leaf, wherein the first end portion of the primary seal leaf of each bypass seal in each of the seal rings overlaps the second end portion of the secondary seal leaf of an adjacent bypass seal in the seal ring.
A rotary regenerative air preheater comprising:
- a housing having an inner surface;
- a heat exchange rotor rotatably mounted within the housing having a radially outer surface and axially spaced hot and cold end portions each having a circumferential sealing surface, the outer surface of the rotor and the inner surface of the housing defining a gap;
- and
- a plurality of bypass seals mounted to the housing and sealingly engaging the sealing surfaces of the hot and cold end portions of the rotor, each of the bypass seals having oppositely disposed first and second ends and comprising longitudinally extending primary and secondary seal leaves mounted together at only a single longitudinal position intermediate the first and second ends.
A bypass seal for a rotary regenerative air preheater having oppositely disposed first and second ends and comprising longitudinally extending primary and secondary seal leaves mounted together at only a single longitudinal position intermediate the first and second ends, each of the seal leaves having oppositely disposed first and second ends and first and second end portions, the first end portion of the primary seal leaf extending longitudinally beyond the first end of the secondary seal leaf and the second end portion of the secondary seal leaf extending longitudinally beyond the second end of the primary seal leaf, wherein the first end of the primary seal leaf defines the first end of the bypass seal and the second end of the secondary seal leaf defines the second end of the bypass seal.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.