A seal includes a mating ring that rotates relative to a carbon primary ring at a seal interface. A buffer gas is provided into the seal and passes from the back of the primary ring to the seal interface. The seal can be used as a separation seal or in combination with another seal.

A sealing arrangement includes a housing, a shaft and a sealing unit. The sealing unit includes a sealing ring having a retaining section and having a sealing lip which extends outwardly from the retaining section in a direction radial to the central axis of the sealing unit and which dynamically sealingly rests against a sealing surface of a housing of the sealing arrangement. The sealing unit includes an internally tensioning clamping ring which is arranged embedded in the material of the sealing ring and secures the axial position of the retaining section in the retaining groove and ensures that the retaining section is circumferentially pretensioned and statically sealingly rests against the shaft.

A bearing is mounted to a static structure outwardly of the shaft, and supporting the shaft. A bearing compartment is defined by face seal arrangements on each of two axial sides of a bearing. Each face seal arrangement includes a seal seat rotating with the shaft and a non-rotating sealing ring. The seal housing is exposed to high pressure air outward of the bearing compartment. A coil spring biases the seal housing towards the seal seat, such that the sealing face is biased into contact with the seal seat by a bias force including a net fluid force acting on the seal housing and the coil spring. The sealing face is defined by a contact portion contacting the seal seat and a feed portion recessed from the seal seat. The feed portion includes a plurality of circumferentially spaced feed slots fluidly connected to at least one annular groove.

A coupling for conveying a fluid between a stationary part and a rotatable part having confronting ports centered on a rotation axis of the rotatable part has an axially extending tube fixed in the port of one of the parts and extending toward the port of the other of the parts and a control element axially slidable on the tube. The one part, the tube, and the control element form an annular chamber around the tube pressurizable for axially shifting the control element. A first slide ring is connected to the control element and carries a seal ring turned toward the port of the other part, and a second ring on the other part at the port thereof axially bears on the first slide ring so that pressurization of chamber presses the slide rings axially against each other.

A rotary machine for acting on a process fluid includes an impeller, a shaft, a drive, a seal and a flush casing. The impeller acts on the process fluid and is mounted on the shaft. The drive is connected to the shaft and rotates the shaft and the impeller about an axial direction. The seal has a sealing element sealing the shaft during rotation of the shaft. The flush casing receives a flushing fluid for flushing the sealing element, and delimits an annular flush chamber extending about the sealing element. The flush casing includes a bushing surrounding the sealing element and delimits a radial leakage gap arranged between the sealing element and the bushing. The bushing delimits an axial leakage gap between the impeller and the bushing, and the width of the axial leakage gap in the axial direction is adjustable.

A seal includes a mating ring that rotates relative to a porous carbon primary ring at a seal interface. A buffer gas is provided into the seal and passes from the back of the primary ring to the seal interface. The seal can be used as a separation seal or in combination with another seal.

An axial shaft seal ring has a holding portion and a sealing portion, which are connected to one another via an elastically deformable sealing membrane. The sealing membrane has a plurality of spatial structure areas R in the circumferential direction of the shaft seal ring, which serve as a circumferential reserve of the sealing membrane. As a result of a centrifugal force F.sub.R accompanying a rotational movement of the shaft seal ring around the central axis thereof and acting on the sealing membrane, an expansion of the sealing membrane in a radial direction is effected at least in the spatial structure areas, in such a manner that the sealing portion is acted upon by the sealing membrane with an axially directed pull force F.sub.Z, which is directed opposite to the pressing force F.sub.A.

Disclosed is a device for regulating the compression force of a spring-spacer assembly provided in a mechanical shaft seal in a system including a motor and a pump or compressor. The device includes a spacer made from shape memory alloy, a spring in line with the spacer, and a heater proximate the spacer. When heated, the spacer contracts in length, resulting in a decrease in compression force. Also disclosed are systems and methods utilizing the device. The device is particularly useful when starting a pump or compressor to reduce friction in the mechanical seal. Existing mechanical seals can be easily retrofitted with the device.

A seal includes a mating ring that rotates relative to a carbon primary ring at a seal interface. A buffer gas is provided into the seal and passes from the back of the primary ring to the seal interface. The seal can be used as a separation seal or in combination with another seal.

A turbine of a gas turbine engine has an air riding seal that forms a seal between a rotor and a stator of the turbine, the air riding seal including an annular piston movable in an axial direction under the influence of a pressure on one side with a pressure acting on an opposite side that self-balances the air riding seal during the steady state condition of the engine and lifts off the seal during engine transients.