Active surface for a packing seal intended for a shaft sealing system

Abstract

A packing seal is provided for a system for sealing the shaft of a primary motor-driven pump unit of a nuclear reactor, intended to ensure sealing between the primary circuit and the atmosphere. The packing seal including a rotary active surface and a floating active surface, in which a face of the floating active surface and/or the rotary active surface is micro- or nano-structured by an array of holes or pillars, each hole or pillar having lateral dimensions and a height of between 10 nm and 5 m, the distance between two consecutive holes or pillars being between 10 nm and 5 m.

Claims

1. A hydrostatic packing seal for a system for sealing a shaft of primary motor-driven pump units of nuclear reactors, the hydrostatic packing seal comprising: a rotary active surface attached to the shaft and a floating active surface, wherein the floating active surface is configured to move axially to follow axial displacements of the shaft, and wherein the rotary active surface and the floating active surface face each other and are separated by a water film, wherein said rotary active surface or said floating active surface has at least one surface structured by an array of asperities to prevent the deposition of iron oxide fouling said at least one surface of said rotary active surface or said floating active surface, each asperity having lateral dimensions between 10 nm and 5 m, a height between 10 nm and 5 m, and a distance between two consecutive asperities being between 10 nm and 5 m, said asperities being holes or pillars.

2. The hydrostatic packing seal according to claim 1, wherein the asperities are holes.

3. The hydrostatic packing seal according to claim 1, wherein the asperities are pillars.

4. The hydrostatic packing seal as claimed in claim 3, wherein at least one of the pillars has a form factor less than 2.

5. The hydrostatic packing seal according to claim 1, wherein the asperities are nanometric asperities that have lateral dimensions between 10 nm and 1 m and a height between 10 nm and 1 m, with the distance between two consecutive asperities being between 10 nm and 1 m.

6. The hydrostatic packing seal according to claim 1, wherein the asperities are micronic asperities that have lateral dimensions between 1 m and 5 m and a height between 1 m and 5 m, with the distance between two consecutive asperities being between 1 m and 5 m.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will result from reading the following detailed description, in reference to the annexed figures, which show:

(2) FIG. 1, a cross-section view of a system for sealing a shaft according to an embodiment of the invention;

(3) FIG. 2, a diagrammatical view of a seal no. 1 according to an embodiment of the invention;

(4) FIG. 3 diagrammatically shows the phenomenon of clogging of a seal of an active surface;

(5) FIG. 4 diagrammatically shows the attaching of particles on the surface of a seal of an active surface according to an embodiment of the invention and on a flat surface of an active surface;

(6) FIG. 5 diagrammatically shows two methods according to an embodiment of the invention;

(7) FIG. 6 diagrammatically shows the surface of an active surface according to an embodiment of the invention;

(8) FIG. 7 diagrammatically shows the surface of an active surface according to another embodiment of the invention;

(9) FIG. 8 diagrammatically shows an active surface according to another embodiment of the invention.

(10) For increased clarity, identical or similar elements are marked with identical reference signs over all of the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(11) FIG. 1 shows a system of mechanical packing seals for the shaft 4 of a primary motor-driven pump unit of a nuclear reactor. This system for sealing the shaft comprises a seal no. 1 referenced as 1 in the figure, a seal no. 2 referenced as 2 in the figure, a seal no. 3 referenced as 3 in the figure. Each seal 1, 2, 3 is comprised of a rotary active surface integral with the shaft 7 and with a floating active surface that can follow the axial displacements of the shaft 7 but not rotating.

(12) The seal no. 1 is shown more precisely in FIG. 2. The seal no. 1 provides most of the drop in pressure between the primary circuit 8 and the atmosphere 9. The seal no. 1 is of the hydrostatic type, with a film of water of a thickness of about 10 m. The seal no. 1 comprises a rotary active surface 10 integral with the shaft 7 and a floating active surface 11 that can follow the axial displacements of the shaft 7. The leakage rate of the seal no. 1 is determined by the double slope of the floating active surface 11 or by the slopes of the rotating 10 and floating 11 active surfaces. The active surfaces are made of silicon nitride Si3N4.

(13) The process of clogging of the active surfaces 10, 11 in the absence of the characteristics of the invention is explained in FIG. 3. Water circulates between the active surfaces 10, 11. This water provides Fe.sup.2+ ions which are preferentially adsorbed at the surface of the active surfaces in Si.sub.3N.sub.4. The Fe.sup.2+ is a Lewis acid, it reacts with the oxygen groups present on the surface of the active surfaces and can in turn react with the colloidal or particulate Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 that has a strong electron donor component. The Fe.sup.2+ ions can then be absorbed on the surface of the particles of hematite and the continuous chain reaction, which causes the clogging of the active surfaces.

(14) In order to prevent this clogging process, in reference to FIG. 4, the surface 12 of each one of the active surfaces 10, 11 is structured in such a way as to avoid asperities 14 on the surface of the active surfaces that have a size between 10% and 50% of the size of the particles of Fe.sub.2O.sub.3. Consequently, the surface of the active surfaces is structured by an array of asperities 14, which can be holes or pillars.

(15) When the asperities 14 are holes, each hole has lateral dimensions between 10 nm and 5 m, and a height from 10 nm to 5 m, with the distance between two consecutive holes being between 10 nm and 5 m.

(16) When the asperities are pillars, each pillar has lateral dimensions between 10 nm and 5 m and a height between 10 nm to 5 m. The form factor, i.e. the ratio of the height over the lateral dimension is more preferably less than 2 in order to prevent erosion phenomena. The distance between two consecutive pillars is between 10 nm and 5 m.

(17) As such, even if Fe.sup.2+ ions are adsorbed on the surface of the active surfaces, the attaching of the particles of Fe.sub.2O.sub.3 on the surface of the active surfaces is then limited by the surface roughness of the active surfaces with respect to a flat surface, as such preventing the clogging of the active surfaces.

(18) The structuring of the surface of the active surfaces can be carried out by different methods.

(19) According to an embodiment, the structuring is a nanostructuring that can be carried out according to a bottom-up approach, for example by using a method of nanosphere lithography.

(20) As such, FIG. 5 shows a nanosphere lithography (NSL) method that makes it possible to obtain an array of holes or of pillars on the surface of the active surfaces. Nanosphere lithography is based on the self-assembly of monodispersed micro- or nanospheres (polystyrene for example) on the surface of a substrate in order to form a two-dimensional mask. The method first comprises a step 101 of depositing microspheres or nanospheres on the surface of the active surface. The methods for depositing the suspension of spheres are varied: mention can be made in particular of spin-coating, the Langmuir-Blodgett method or dip-coating. The method then comprises a step 102 of reducing the size of the spheres by reactive ion etching.

(21) When the asperities to be made are pillars, the method then comprises a step 103 of etching the surface of the active surfaces through the mask formed by the spheres in such a way as to carry out an array of pillars on the surface of each one of the active surfaces. The method then comprises a step 104 of suppressing balls.

(22) When the asperities to be made are holes, the method comprises a step 103a of depositing a layer of chromium for example over the array of balls of a reduced size. The method then comprises a step 103b of suppressing balls. The method then comprises a step of etching through the imprint of the balls (not shown). Finally the method comprises a step 104 of suppressing the chromium mask in such a way as to former an array of holes.

(23) FIG. 6 diagrammatically shows an array of asperities 14 on the surface of one of the active surfaces according to an embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the asperities are holes 13. The holes 13 have lateral dimensions D1 between 10 nm and 5 m. The holes 13 have a height H1 between 10 nm and 5 m. Two adjacent holes 13 are spaced apart by a distance D2 between 10 nm and 5 m.

(24) FIG. 7 diagrammatically shows an array of asperities on the surface of one of the active surfaces of another embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the asperities 14 are pillars 15. The pillars 15 have a lateral dimension D4 between 10 nm and 5 m. The pillars 15 have a height H2 between 10 nm and 5 m. Two adjacent pillars 15 are spaced by a distance D3 between 10 nm and 5 m. The height H2 of these pillars is preferably limited to ratios H2/D4 less than 2 in order to prevent erosion phenomena.

(25) FIG. 8 diagrammatically shows the surface of an active surface according to another embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the surface of each one of the active surfaces has a double structuring: as such, the surface of each one of the active surfaces is micro-structured by an array of micronic asperities. In this embodiment, the micronic asperities are pillars 17. The pillars 17 have lateral dimensions D6 between 500 nm and 5 m. The pillars 17 have a height H3 between 500 nm and 5 m. The pillars 17 are separated by spaces 16 which have transverse dimensions D5 between 500 nm and 5 m. Moreover, the pillars 17 preferably have a ratio of the height H3 over transverse dimensions 06 less than 2 and more preferably less than 1 in order to limit the problems of erosion. The surface of the active surfaces can for example by microstructured by a method of lithography.

(26) The surface of the active surfaces is furthermore nanostructured by an array of nanometric asperities 22. In this embodiment, the nanometric asperities 22 are pillars similar to those described in reference to FIG. 7. The nanostructured surface is present at the bottom 21 of the spaces between pillars 17, at the upper surface 20 of the pillars 17 and more preferably also on the blanks 19 of the pillars 17. Such a nanostructuring of the upper surfaces 20, of the bottom 21 and of the blanks 19 of the pillars can be carried out by covering the surface of the microstructured active surface with nanoparticles formed by cathode sputtering. The surface of the active surface must be inclined and rotating in order to be able to deposit particles on the blanks 19 of the pillars 17. The surface of the active surface will then be etched by high pressure reactive ions in order to carry out an isotropic etching. The nanoparticles positioned on the pillars are then removed.

(27) Naturally the invention is not limited to the embodiments described in reference to the figures and alternatives could be considered without leaving the scope of the invention. The method used to carry out the micro- or nanostructured array of holes or of pillars can be a method other than the one described in reference to FIG. 5, such as for example a top-down approach such as electron-beam lithography, X-ray lithography, focused ion beam lithography, nanoimprint lithography, interference lithography. The array of micronic or nanometric holes or of pillars can also be carried out according to a bottom-up approach, for example by using a mask of micro- or nano-objects, organised or not in such a way as to implement a method of nanosphere lithography or a method of colloidal lithography, or a method of lithography by using an assembly of block copolymers, in such a way as to transfer the patterns into the surface of the active surface, for example via wet, dry or laser etching. In particular, the laser can be focused through balls of SiO.sub.2, which creates a hole in the surface of the active surface at the location of the ball. Moreover, the method of carrying out the array of holes or of pillars can also comprise additional steps such as the depositing of another layer on top of the balls, the removing of the balls and the etching through their imprint.

(28) Moreover, the surface of the active surfaces can also be coated with a protective layer that makes it possible to prevent the Fe.sup.2+ ions from being adsorbed on the surface of the active surfaces. In this case, the surface of the active surfaces is preferably coated with the protective layer prior to the step of micro- or nanostructuring. The protective layer is more preferably made from silicon carbide (SiC), titanium nitride (TiN), chromium nitride (CrN), nickel (Ni) or micro- or nanocrystalline diamond.