NON-CONTACTING GAP-TYPE SEAL HAVING A RING WITH A PATTERNED MICRODAM SEAL FACE

摘要

A seal face (78) of a ring (76) used in a non-contacting, gap-type seal having an annular groove area (80) with microdams (92), each having a preferable width of about .025 inches, between a plurality of groove surface areas (90). The microdams (92) provide a boundary to the groove surface areas (90) whereby the recess of each groove surface area bounded (90) by the microdams (92) acts as a unitary pressure zone and the pressure in the separate zones decreases in a series of steps as measured from one circumference of the ring to the other circumference. IMAGE