NASA TECHNICAL

MEMORANDUM

NASA TM X-71607

N7U-33229

/(NASA-TM-X-71607) SEALING TECHNOLOGY FOR

AIRCRAFT GAS TURBINE ENGINES (NASA)
15 p HC
CSCL 21E

<
<

SEALING TECHNOLOGY FOR AIRCRAFT

GAS TURBINE ENGINES
by L. P. Ludwig and R. L. Johnson
Lewis Research Center
Cleveland, Ohio
TECHNICAL PAPER proposed for presentation at
Tenth Propulsion Conference sponsored by
American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics
and Society of Automotive Engineers
San Diego, California, October 21-24, 1974

G3/28

Onclas
48758

REPRODUCIBILITY OF THE
SEALING TECHNOLOGY FOR AIRCRAFT GAS TURBINE ENGINES

PAGE IS POOR

**

L. P. Ludwig and R. L. Johnson

National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Lewis Research Center
Cleveland, Ohio

Abstract
Experimental evaluation under simulated engine
conditions revealed that conventional mainshaft
seals have disadvantages of high gas leakage rates
and wear. An advanced seal concept, the selfacting face seal, has a much lower gas leakage rate
and greater pressure and speed capability. In endurance tests (150 hr) to 43 200 rpn the selfacting seal wear was not measurable, indicating
noncontact sealing operation was maintained even at
this high rotative speed.
A review of published data revealed that the
leakage through gas path seals has a significant
effect on TSFC, stall margin and engine maintenance. Reducing leakages by reducing seal clearances results in rubbing contact, and then the seal
thermal response and wear determines the final seal
clearances. The control of clearances requires a
material with the proper combination of rub tolerance (abradability) and erosion resistance. Increased rub tolerance is usually gained at the expense of reduced erosion resistance and vice versa.
I.

Introduction

A multiplicity of seals are used in gas turbines to restrict gas leakage, provide thrust balancing, maintain thermal gradients, meter cooling
gas flow, and protect bearing sumps. Since a gas
turbine has many sealing locations (blade tips,
interstage, mainshaft, etc.), the accumulative effect of deficient sealing practice can be appreciable. In fact, operating experience reveals that
sealing practice has a significant impact in three
areas: engine performance, stall margin and general engine maintainability.
The effect of sealing on performance has received some documentation. Reference 1 calculates
a 21 percent power loss attributable to gas seal
leakages (mainshaft, gas path, flanges, etc.) in a
small gas turbine engine. Reference 2 gives a detailed review of the effect of seal clearance on
performance of transport and fighter engines.
This study indicated that a 2i percent change in
TSFC can be expected for a nominal change in seal
clearances.
There is considerable evidence that stall
margin can be affected by incorporating various
geometries (e.g., grooves) into the blade tip
shrouds;(3) also, the tip clearance magnitude affects stall margin.
A study on reliability and maintainability of
seven small military engines now in use, shows
that one of the main causes of unscheduled engine
removal is oil leakage through carbon mainshaft
seals.W In fact, it ranks as the third most
Head, Seals Section.
**
Chief, Lubrication Branch.

common cause (foreign object damage and improper

maintenance being first and second) out of a list of
28 failure modes; and in reference 4 it is stated
that "many in the engine design, management, and
procurement communities tend to minimize the seal
problem and correspondingly downplay the value of
improvement in this area."
Dirt ingestion through high leakage seals at
the bearing sumps degrades bearing life. Other
problems which can occur as a result of high airflow
into the bearing lubrication system are increased
gearbox pressure (tends to lower seal life) and increased 'bearing cavity pressure which may limit oil
flow into the bearing compartment and thereby affect
bearing life.
This paper will consider the state-of-the-art
of two general types of seals in a gas turbine: the
mainshaft seals and the gas path seals (e.g., compressor blade tip). A comparison of the wear and
gas leakage rates obtained for three conventional
mainshaft seals (ring, circumferential and face
seals for small engines) and for an advanced seal,
the self-acting seal, is made. The effect of leakage through gas path seals is reviewed and effect of
rub interactions discussed. Experimental data (wear
and erosion) are presented for abradable turbine
shroud materials.
II.

Apparatus and Test Seal Description

Mainshaft Seal Rig

The rig bearing compartment is typical of small
high-speed gas turbine sumps. Sealing positions
were located forward and aft of the bearing, which
enabled simultaneous testing of two seal assemblies.
The bearing compartment drains by gravity into
a static air-oil separator. Desired air pressure
is introduced into the cavities adjacent to the test
seals, and the air that leaks past the two test
seals is passed through a flowmeter downstream of
the air-oil separator to obtain a measure of seal
leakage.
Conventional Mainshaft Seals
Mainshaft seals are used in gas turbine engines
to restrict gas leakage into the bearing compartments (sumps). The air leaking through the seal
prevents oil leakage out. In some engines the gas
pressure and temperature are relatively low, so that
a single labyrinth seal to restrict gas leakage into
the sump is adequate (Fig. 1). At low pressures,
the efficiency loss due to seal leakage is not significant. However, a major disadvantage of the
labyrinth seal, as compared to the rubbing contact
seals (circumferential and face), is that the
higher leakage requires corresponding larger ducting requirements which results in easier passage of
airborne water and dirt into the sump. It should
be emphasized that dirt is very detrimental to
bearing life. In addition, for labyrinth seals,

reverse pressure drops must be avoided to preclude

high oil loss. Further, high temperature compressor air leaking into oil sumps can lead to
sump fires.
As engine pressures increase, the high leakage
rates associated with labyrinth seals start to become significant from a performance penalty and
sump design standpoint. In small engines, the
available space for the bearing sumps tends to be
very limited, hence the amount of gas leakage that
can be handled in the sump is limited.
In large engines with high gas pressure differential (i.e., 241 N/cm2 (350 psi)), multiple
labyrinth seals (see schematic in Fig. 2) are used
to protect the bearing from the high temperature,
high pressure, turbine cooling gas. These multiple
labyrinth seal systems take up considerable space
and are generally too costly and difficult to
accommodate in small engines. Thus, multiple labyrinth seal systems have significant disadvantages
when applied to small high pressure engines.
The floating ring seal can be considered to be
a type of labyrinth seal, which, because the ring
is not restrained from moving in a radial direction, can be set up to operate with less leakage
gap clearance than the conventional labyrinth
seals.(5) The floating ring assembly (Fig. 3(a)),
which is free to rotate in the seal case, is composed of a carbon ring shrunk into a steel retaining band. The retaining band is used to control
the expansion rate of the composite ring and to reinforce it against compressive and rotational
stress. The ring assembly is designed to have a
coefficient of thermal expansion similar to that of
the seal runner. Thus, the clearance between the
runner outside diameter and the carbon inside diameter will be constant (independent of temperature).
The ring assembly is not restrained from rotating
and in operation may rotate (at a speed less than
shaft speed) because of local and/or intermittent
contact with the shaft.(5)
Circumferential seals operate with very low
gas leakages and are therefore attractive, but the
pressure differential capability for these pressure
unbalanced seals is low (less than 41 N/cm2 (60
psi)) because of rubbing contact. The circumferential segmented seal (Fig. 3(b)) is a carbon ring
consisting of three 120 segments held together by
a garter spring on the outside diameter. When the
ring is installed on the runner, the gaps between
the adjacent ends of the segments is a source of
air leakage into the bearing cavity. During operation, when the carbon wears, the garter spring
forces the segments radially inward. When about
0.127 mm (0.005 in.) of radial wear has occurred,
the adjacent segment ends butt up and the seal
then operates as a close-clearance labyrinth.(5)
Other circumferential seal designs (not evaluated
in this program) incorporate multiple rings or
overlapping joints to eliminate the leakage at the
gaps between the segments. In addition pressure
balancing of the segments can result in a moderate
increase in the pressure and speed capability.(6)
The conventional face seal (Fig. 3(c)) consists of a rotating seat that is attached to the
shaft and a nonrotating carbon sealing nose that
is free to move in an axial direction and thus
accommodate engine thermal expansion. The secondary seal (piston ring) is subjected only to the

axial motion (no rotation) of the nose; a wave

spring provides axial mechanical force to maintain
contact. The sealing nose is pressure balanced with
an area ratio of 0.645 (for pressure balance definition, see Ref. 7). Pressure balancing is also
applied to the secondary carbon seal ring, both
axially and radially.
Self-Acting Seal
A self-acting face seal (Fig. 4) is similar to
a conventional face seal except for the added feature of a self-acting geometry, similar to that employed in a gas lubricated thrust bearing. When
the shaft rotates, the sealing faces are separated
a slight amount (in the range of 0.00025 to
0.00127 cm (0.0001 to 0.0005 in.)) by the force generated by this self-acting lift geometry. The positive separation results from the balance of seal
forces and the gas film stiffness of the selfacting geometry. Analyses of the self-acting seal
concept and experimental feasibility studies for
large aircraft gas turbine engines have been detailed in several programs.C'~15)
The self-acting geometry can be any of the
various types used in gas thrust bearings. In the
seal shown in Fig. 4, the self-acting geometry consists of a series of shallow recesses (shrouded
Rayleigh steps) arranged circumferentlally inside
the sealing dam (see Fig. 4, section A-A). An important point to note is that the lift pads are
bounded at their inside diameter and outside diameter by the sealed pressure, Pj. (This is accomplished by feed slots that communicate with the
annular groove directly inside the sealing dam.)
Therefore, a pressure gradient due to gas leakage
occurs only across the seal dam. Thus the effects
of force changes due to seal face deformation are
minimized.(1QJ
Gas Path Seal Rigs
The gas path seal materials were evaluated in
wear (abradability) and erosion rigs. The wear rig
consisted of a single rotating labyrinth knife edge
into which a shroud specimen (60 arc) was moved at
a predetermined rate in order to effect a rub penetration. The shroud specimen was heated to simulate
engine operation.
In the erosion rig, a hot gas stream (Mach
0.35) containing A1203 particles was directed at
shroud specimens. Typical erosion tests were
20 minutes in duration.
Materials
Four conventional type abradable materials and
two experimental materials were evaluated in the
wear and erosion rigs. The conventional type materials were:
(1) 1/16 inch size honeycomb of Hastelloy X
material (material A)
(2) Porous cermet with metal honeycomb support
(material B)
(3) Porous metal with diatomaceous earth and
honeycomb support (material C)
(4) Sintered fiber metal of NiCrAlY (material D)

REPRODUCIBILITY OF TH
ORIGINAL PAGE IS POOR
161 psi) and a sliding speed range from 91 to
183 m/sec (300 to 600 ft/sec). This is a rotative
speed range of 27 300 to 54 600 rpm. Neither the
(1) Sintered fiber metal of NiCrAlY with a
plasma spray of nichrome/glass coating (ma- . forward nor the aft carbon nose or seal seat showed
any wear during this evaluation. Thus, the sealing
terial E),
surfaces were separated by a gas film over the entire matrix of operating variables. This suggests
(2) Sintered fiber metal of NiCrAlY with a
that the gas bearing film stiffness was sufficient
plasma spray of nichrome/glass/CaF2 coating
to prevent rubbing contact under the high inertia
(material F) .
forces that are associated with high rotative
speeds. (*-^>
III. Results and Discussion

The experimental materials evaluated were:

Comparison of Mainshaft Seal Performance

Three conventional mainshaft seals (floating
ring, circumferential segmented ring, and face) and
a self-acting face seal were evaluated in simulated
gas turbine operation.
During high-speed testing (above 122 m/sec
(400 ft/sec)) of the floating ring seal, substantial carbon wear occurred. (Wear was to be expected at the 213 m/sec (700 ft/sec) point since
the calculated operating gap closes to 0.0025 mm
(0.0001 in.).) The results of the testing revealed
that the leakages were relatively high, and that it
does no good to attempt to obtain lower leakages by
reducing the initial clearances because the seal
wears to a clearance value that is dictated by
shaft runout and dynamic effects. In fact, seals
starting with low initial radial clearances can end
up with running clearances greater than the seal
assembled with intermediate clearances; this is
thought to be due to a thermal rub interaction
(see section on gas path seals). The changes in
diametral gap are shown in table I for two rings
with different initial diametral gaps. The table
shows the radial gaps after operating at sliding
speeds of 91, 122, 152, 183, and 213 m/sec (300,
400, 500, 600, and 700 ft/sec). The ring with the
smallest initial gap (forward seal) 0.0610 mm
(0.0024 in.) wore, in the first test, to a diametral gap of 0.135 mm (0.00530 in.).
The aft seal
did not wear because the initial gap was large
enough to accommodate dynamic shaft motion.
It was found during the test program that the
circumferential segmented seals wore excessively at
high speeds and pressures, and eventually operated
as labyrinths when enough wear allowed the segments
to butt together. At this point the amount of additional wear that takes place depends on running
speed; the higher speeds cause more shaft radial
motion and therefore more wear.
Conventional face seal evaluation covered a
range of speeds and air presures at ambient temperatures. Typical conditions and resulting air
flows, bearing cavity pressures, and seal temperatures are listed in table II. The seal operated
successfully over a wide range of conditions, including 213 m/sec (700 ft/sec), with a pressure
difference of 117 N/cm2 (170 psi) . The total face
seal carbon nose wear for 20 hours was 0.0051 mm
(0.0002 in.) on the forward seal and 0.0102 mm
(0.0004 in.) on the aft seal. The fact that the
temperature did not exceed 394 K (250 F) at sliding speeds of 152 m/sec (500 ft/sec) suggests the
seals were operating on an air film during much of
the running time.
Table III contains the gas leakage data for
two self-acting seals operating over a pressure
differential range from 23 to 111 N/cm2 (34 to

Note in table III that the seal leakage increases as the sliding speed increases (for any
given pressure differential). This leakage increase
is due to a slight increase of the sealing gap because the increased lift force produced by the lift
pads (dynamic effect). As would be expected, the
leakage increases as the pressure increases.
To further explore the operating limits of the
self-acting seals, 150 hours of endurance operation
at ambient temperature was conducted as follows:
Speed
a/sec

102
122
137
145
145

Air pressure
differential

Time,
hr

ft/sec

334
400
450
475
475

N/cm2

psi

103
103
103
103
124

149.7
149.7
149.7
149.7
179.7

28
22
65
20
15

Air temperature varied throughout the test but

was generally from 372 to 408 K (200 to 275 F).
Inspection of the seals after the 150 hours revealed
that the wear to each seal was insignificant (less
than 0.0012 mm (0.00005 in.)j.
A comparison of the gas leakage rates of the
various seal configurations is shown in Fig. 5. In
general, the plot shows that self-acting face seal
has the potential of significantly reducing leakage
as compared to the conventional seals.
Of the conventional configurations, face seals
allowed the least air flow at high pressure differentials. Circumferential segmented seals are as
tight as face seals at moderate operating conditions; however, experience and the subject test program results have shown that at pressure differentials above 41.4 N/cm2 (60 psi) and speeds above
107 m/sec (350 ft/sec), these (unbalanced) circumferential segmented seals rapidly wear out and
finally operate as labyrinths. In that case there
is little to choose between circumferential, rotating ring, and labyrinth seals in terms of air flows.
To gain some perspective of the magnitude of
air flow under discussion, engine experience has
shown that excessive air flow into a bearing package
incorporating seals of the size used in the test
program would be in the order of 0.012 kg/sec
(0.029 Ib/sec). Taking midpoint values of the range
of pressure differentials in Fig. 5, the face seal
could not meet this criterion at pressure differentials above approximately 85 N/cm2 (123 psi) ; and
the limiting pressure differential for circumferential segmented seals (which wear rapidly), rotating
ring seals, and simple labyrinths would be approximately 40 N/cm2 (58 psi). The self-acting seal,
however, did not reach the limiting leakage rate

and had a leakage of 0.0046 kg/sec (0.0102 Ib/sec)

at a pressure differential of 107.6 N/cm^
(156.0 psi). In general the self-acting seal had
about one third the leakage of the conventional
face seal.
Gas Path Seals
Gas path sealing either in the primary or secondary gas flow paths, is a complex engineering
problem since these.seals operate in extreme and
varying temperature environments under large centrifugal stress conditions, high peripheral speeds,
and must withstand occasional rubbing contact.
These rotating and stationary seal elements can .
move radially and axially with respect to one .
another due to engine thermals and transient condi-.
tions. However, in proposing improvements, it
must be kept in mind that the foremost requirement
is reliability; that is, the seal system must not
enter a self-destruct rub mode when hard rubs occur
and adverse blade damage must not be produced.
Considering all the seals, the primary gas
path seals (Fig. 6) have the greatest impact on
TSFC. Generally, the gas path sealing clearances
change with each engine condition (idle, takeoff,
climb, etc.); the support structure dimensional
changes being large relative to the seal clearances. One portion of the design problem is that
of compensating for these relatively large displacements through design features and judicious
use of materials. The trend toward higher engine
pressures and temperatures will tend to increase
these seal displacements.
Typically, a secondary gas path system contains flow restrictions in parallel and series.
The functions of the secondary seals include cooling, maintaining proper thermal balance, pressurizing, venting and thrust balancing. Because of the
cavity interconnections across the seals, a problem at one seal location can affect other parts of
the system (such as changing the thrust bearing
load). Changes in the turbine cooling flow are of
particular concern since the trend is to use materials at temperatures which result in the minimum
acceptable low cycle thermal fatigue life. The
total seal clearance, of course, is a function of
differential thermal growth, wear, and erosion.
The crux of the gas path seal (primary or secondary
flow) problem is to maintain control of clearances
that need to be made as small as practical.
Effect of Clearance
Reference 1 points out that gas leakage effects become more acute as engine size decreases
because the ratio of engine circumference to engine
flow area increases. For example, the leakage
analysis reported in Ref. 1 indicates that the
engine flange and labyrinth seal leakage is 2 percent of the mass flow for a 5 pound per second
engine, and only 0.3 percent for a 120 pound per
second engine. Reference 1 presents a detailed
analysis of the clearance effects in a hypothetical
engine with a 5 pound per second air flow. The
engine was designed for zero leakage and performance calculated; performance was then determined
with typical leakage values (based on seal tests)
assigned to each seal position. The results are
shown in Fig. 7. The most significant losses are
in the labyrinth seals, and in particular the labyrinth seals at the discharge of the centrifugal

compressor and at the turbine bearing locations.

The calculated overall effect (which includes losses
through flanges and vane pivots) is a 21 percent
loss in power and a 10 percent increase in SFC.
In large axial- compressors, overall efficiency
losses of 2 to 6 percent have been indicated^) .and
typical data are shown in Fig. 8 where compressor
efficiency is plotted as a function of clearance to
blade span ratio.
In turbines the blade tip clearances tend to be
large because of significant thermal growths and
thermal transients. Tip clearance to blade height
'ratios of 1 to 4 percent are common. The efficiency
loss, however, depends on the degree of turbine reaction because the pressure difference across the
stage has a direct effect on.the amount of leakage
through the tip clearance. Experimental efficiency
effects for reaction and impulse turbines have been
published;(16,17) these data are shown in Fig. 9.
In general high reaction turbines show about a
3 percent loss in efficiency for an, increase in tip
clearance of 1 percent of blade height; for impulse
turbines the loss is about 1.6 percent for an increase in clearance of 1 percent of blade height.
Effect of Shroud Geometry
Stall margin is affected by both clearance and
seal shroud geometry (casing treatment). The term
"casing treatment" has been used when holes, slots,
grooves, etc., are added to the shroud surface in
the region over the blade tips. Many geometries
have been investigated.(3,18) jn general, it has
been found that stall margin can be improved by
adding casing treatment if stall inception is at
the outer wall. Reference 19 attributes the improvement to reduced downwash from the tip leakage
flow.
.
.
Effect of Rub Interaction
As previously stated, clearance control is the
crux of the seal problem and generally, the sealing
clearances change with each engine" condition. Relative displacements of the seal components can be
grouped into four categories:'^)
(1) Symmetric differential growth - This effect
is principally due to thermal growth differences,
but pressure and body forces are usually also significant. It is vital to consider not only the
total growth but also the thermal response rate.
Thus, the shroud cooling and mounting of the seal
to the mating parts represents an integrated design
problem.
(2) Ovalization - An example is displacement
due to localized introduction of hot gas that
causes asymmetric displacements. Also mounting
practice may allow case sag.
(3) Beam bending displacements - These occur
for various reasons; some are: rotor thermal bow,
mounting, aeroelastic vibration of seal parts, and
maneuver loads. (Maneuver displacements can be
large.)
.
(4) Machining tolerance buildup
In attempting to maintain close clearances,
accumulation of adverse displacements causes rubs
(usually localized). If no wear occurs to the

REPRODUCIBILITY OF THP
ORIGINAL PAGE IS POOR
blade (or knife edge) and all wear occurs in the
shroud, then only the local clearance increase is
generated. If wear occurs to the blades (knife),
then the clearance has increased around its full
annulus. Thus, an ideal situation would be zero
wear to blades with all wear occurring in the
shroud; a practical goal is 10 percent of the wear
to the blade (knife) and 90 percent in the shroud;
this can be termed a 10:1 rub tolerance.
Thermal Response
Intimately associated with rub tolerance is
the thermal response of the seal system when a rub
occurs. This thermal response can be divided into
two parts - an overall response and a local response .
The overall response is dependent on the rub
severity and the overall thermal expansion of the
static and rotating parts. The differential expansions can lead to a self-destruct wear mode. That
is, the rub itself generates enough heat to cause
thermal growth to increase the severity of the rub.
This type of rub interaction has been responsible
for a series of engine failures. Thus, the first
seal design criteria is avoidance of self-destruct
rub interaction.
It has been found that the wear, in stable rub
interactions, is dependent on the initial seal
clearance. In some engines if the labyrinth seal
is assembled with a small initial clearance, a rub
interaction is severe and produces significant wear
that results in large final clearance. But smaller
final clearances can be obtained if the seals are
assembled with intermediate size initial clearances,
because then, the thermal response associated with
the rub interaction is less severe and less wear

The change in stator and rotor diameters depends on the temperature change (due to the heat
input) and coefficient of thermal expansion. The
heat transfer problem is complex because of the
complex geometry and temperature gradients. But,
in general, it is desirable to maximize the heat
input into the shroud and minimize the heat input
into the rotor; this tends to minimize the differential thermal growth and the corresponding normal
force between the rotor and shroud.
In addition to the overall thermal response,
the local thermal response has a significant influence on the rub interaction. For example, experimental data show that when a labyrinth knife
edge rubs against a shroud segment, the rubbing can
take place over just a small segment (~5 arc) of
the 360 of knife edge (see Fig. 10).
Thus, the
heat input is highly localized and a local thermal
bump is generated that expands, rubs harder, and
finally wears away. This is then followed by rubbing over a second small segment which grows and
then wears, ecc. Evidence of localized rubbing is
indicated by the heat discoloration of the knife
edge (Fig. 11) that was rubbed against a shroud
specimen. This type of local rub interaction has
been investigated from a fundamental analytical
standpoint, but application of the tip seal problem
has not been attempted.(20-22)
Rub Tolerance
In addition to the thermal considerations, the

rub tolerance of tip seals is of prime importance,

and research effort is currently being directed
toward development of rub tolerant tip seals that
can operate in turbine environments for long periods
of time without degradation.(23)
As an example of
this work, Fig. 12 shows the torque produced by
rubbing of a simulated labyrinth knife edge against
a turbine shroud specimen. The data are for a rubbing interaction at 183 m/sec (600 ft/sec) with the
labyrinth knife edge penetrating the shroud at a
rate of 0.254 mm (0.010 in.) per second. The four
conventional type materials showed a wide variation
in rubbing torque with the magnitudeof the rubbing
torque being an indication of the wear that occurred
to labyrinth knife edge. The experimental materials
evaluated have nickel-chromium-glass flame sprayed
coatings on a fiber metal base. One experimental
material contained calcium fluoride, as a high temperature lubricant, in the.coating. The effect of
this high temperature lubricant can be seen
(Fig. 12) to have reduced the reaction torque by a
factor of two. Figure 13 shows the clean cut
(groove) produced by the knife edge in this experimental material.
In addition to reaction torque, erosion rate
is a measure of the material potential in engine
applications. Figure 14 shows erosion rates for the
four conventional type materials and the two experimental materials. Note that conventional material
type D, a sintered fiber metal that had low reaction
torque and hence caused low knife edge wear, had a
high erosion rate. On the other hand, materials B
and C had low erosion rates but high torque which
suggests low abradability (high blade wear). The
experimental materials (E and F) with the flame
sprayed coatings showed the lowest erosion rates.
Generally materials with good abradability had poor
erosion characteristics and vice versa. The experimental materials showed a potential for achieving
both good erosion and good abradability. The experimental materials were the first attempts to use
the surface film concepts. Optimization of both
film materials and supporting deformable structure
may give further improvements in tribiological and
erosion properties.
Summary of Results
Four types of shaft seals were evaluated under
simulated gas turbine operating conditions which
included pressures to 148 N/cm' (215 psi). The results of this experimental evaluation revealed the
following:
1. The self-acting face seal operated without
rubbing contact. This was evidenced by lack of
wear. Of particular interest was the successful
operation at 54 600 rpm (183 m/sec (600 ft/sec));
this was taken as evidence that the gas film stiffness was high enough to prevent rubbing contact
under high inertia force conditions.
2. Self-acting face seal leakage was significantly lower than that of the three conventional
seal types.
3. Conventional contact seals may not be satisfactory in future advanced engines because of wear
life and excessive air leakage flow.
a. Of the conventional seals tested, the
face seal configuration was the most successful
at limiting air leakage flow; however, at air-

to-oil pressure differentials above approximately 85 N/cm2 (123 psi) , air flow was considered excessive.
b. The circumferential segmented seal
(unbalanced type) configuration operated well
at moderate conditions, but at air-to-oil
pressure differentials of 41.4 N/cm2 (60 psi)
and speeds above approximately 107 m/sec
(350 ft/sec), it wore very rapidly and eventually operated as a labyrinth.
c. Ring seal clearances, which are determined by shaft dynamics and thermal rub response, results in air leakage rates that are
comparable to labyrinth seals.
Published data on gas path seals was reviewed;
wear and erosion evaluations were made on commercial turbine shroud materials and on some experimental materials using simulated labyrinth knife
edge rubbing into a shroud specimen. This study
revealed:
1, Gas path seals have significant effects on
engine efficiency and compressor stall margin.
2, The thermal response and rub tolerance of
the gas path seal are significant factors in the
determination of the final operating clearances.
3, In four conventional materials there was a
wide variation in their wear, torque reaction, and
erosion resistance. Generally, materials with good
abradability had poor erosion and vice versa.
Shroud materials with flame spray coatings on a deformable substrate show promise of providing more
optimal tribiological as well as erosion properties.
References
1. Paladini, W., "Static and Rotating Air/Gas Seal
Evaluation," CW-WR-70-024F, ASTIA AD-730361,
June 1971, Curtis-Wright Corp., Wood-Ridge,
N.J.

7. Parks, A. J., McKibbin, A. H., Ng, C. C. W^,

and Slayton, R. M., "Development of Mainshaft
Seals for Advanced Air Breathing Propulsion
Systems," PWA-3161, Aug. 1967, Pratt S, Whitney
Aircraft, East Hartford, Conn.; also available
as CR-72338, Aug. 1967, NASA.
8. Povinelli, V. P. and McKibbin, A. H., "Development of Mainshaft Seals for Advanced Air
Breathing Propulsion Systems, Phase 2," PWA3933, June 1970, Pratt & Whitney Aircraft,
East Hartford, Conn.; also available as CR72737, June 1973, NASA.
9. Ludwig, L. P. and Johnson, R. L., "Design Study
of Shaft Face Seal with Self-Acting Lift Augmentation. Ill - Mechanical Components,"
IN D-6164, Apr. 1971, NASA.
10. Ludwig, L. P., Zuk, J., and Johnson, R. L., "
"Design Study of Shaft Face Seal with SelfActing Lift Augmentation. IV - Force Balance," TN D-6568, May 1972, NASA.
11. Zuk, J., Ludwig, L. P., and Johnson, R. L.,
"Quasi-One-Dimensional Compressible Flow
Across Face Seals and Narrow Slots. I - Analysis," TN D-6668, June 1972, NASA,
12. Zuk, J. and Ludwig, L. P., "Investigation of
Isothermal, Compressible Flow Across a Rotating Sealing Dam. I - Analysis," TN D-5344,
Sept. 1969, NASA.
13. Zuk, J. and Smith, P. J., "Computer Program for
Viscous, Isothermal Compressible Flow Across
a Sealing Dam with Small Tilt Angle," TN
D-5373, Aug. 1969, NASA.
14. Zuk, J.; Ludwig, L. P., and Johnson, R. L., "Design Study of.Shaft Face Seal with Self-Acting
Lift Augmentation. I - Self-Acting Pad Geometry," TN D-5744, Apr. 1970, NASA.

2. Mahler, F. H., "Advanced Seal Technology," PWA4372, ASTIA AD-739922, Feb. 1972, Pratt &
Whitney Aircraft, East Hartford, Conn.

15. Povinelli, V. P. and McKibbin, A. H.., "Development of Mainshaft Seals for Advanced Air
Breathing Propulsion Systems, Phase 3," PWA4263, July 1971, Pratt & Whitney Aircraft,
East Hartford, Conn.; also available as CR72987, 1971, NASA.

3. Prince, D. C., Wisler, D. C., and Hilvers,

D. E., "Study of Casing Treatment Stall Margin Improvement Phenomena," R73AEG326, Mar.
1974, General Electric Co., Cincinnati, Ohio;
also available as CR-134552, 1974, NASA.

16. Szanca, E. M., Behning, F. P., and Schum, H. J.,

"Research Turbine for High-Temperature Core
Engine Application. II - Effect of Rotor Tip
Clearance on Overall Performance," TN D-7639,
Apr. 1974, NASA.

4. Rummel, K. G. and Smith, H. J. M., "Investigation and Analysis of Reliability and Maintainability Problems Associated with Army
Aircraft Engines," D210-10571-1, ASTIA AD772950, Aug. 1973, Boeing Vertol Co.,
Philadelphia, Pa.

17. Kofskey, M. G. and Nusbaum, W. J., "Performance

Evaluation of a Two-Stage Axial-Flow Turbine
for Two Values of Tip Clearance," TN D-4388,
Feb. 1968, NASA.

5. Lynwander, P., "Development of Helicopter Engine Seals," LYC-73-48, Nov. 1973, Avco
Lycoming Div., Stratford, Conn.; also available as CR-134647, 1973, NASA.
6. Machine Design, Sept. 13, 1973.

18. Boyce, M. P., Schiller, R. N., and Desai, A. R.,

"Study of Casing Treatment Effects in Axial
Flow Compressors," ASME Paper 74-GT-89,
Zurich, Switzerland, 1974.
19. Boyce, M. P. and Desai, A. R., "Clearance Loss

in a Centrifugal Impeller," in Intersociety

Energy Conversion Engineering Conf., 8th,
Philadelphia, Pa., 1973, pp. 638-642.

REPRODUCffilLITY OF THE
ORIGINAL PAGE IS POOR
20. Barber, J. R.: Thermoelastic Instabilities in
the Sliding of Conforming Solids," Proceedings of the Roy. Society, Vol. 312, :to. 1510,
Sept. 1369, pp. 381-394.

22. Dow, T. A. and Burton, R. A., "The Role of Wear

in the Initiation of Thermoelastic Instabilities of Rubbing Contact," ASM Paper 72-Lub45, iiew York, H . Y . , 1972.

21. Burton, R. A., Heilikar, I)., and Kilapaiti,

S. R., "Thermoelastic Instabilities in a
Seal-Like Configuration," Wear, Vol. 24,
1973, pp. 177-188._

23. Shiembob, L. T., "Abradable Gas Path Seals,"

July 1974, P r a t t & Whitney A i r c r a f t , East
iiartford, Conn. ; also available as CR-134689,
1974, NASA.

Table I

Floating ring seal post test diametral measurements

Test speed, m/sec ( f t / s e c )

New

91 (300)

122 (400)

152 (500)

183 (600)

213 (700)

Forward
seal

Diametral gap, mm
(in.)

0.06096
(0.00240)

0.12446
(0.00530)

0.12700
(0.00500)

0.12700
(0.00500)

0.12700
(0.00500)

0.21590
(0.00850)

Aft
seal

Diametral gap, mm
(in.)

0.13462
(0.00520)

0.13462
(0.00530)

0.13716
(0.00540)

0.13462
(0.00530)

0.14478
(0.00570)

0.16510
(0.00650)

Table II

Rpm

Typical face seal test data

Speed
m/sec

Air pressure
differential

300
400
500
400
500
600
700

300
400
500
400
500
600
700

91
122
152
122
152
183
213

Table III

Rpm

61.4
61.0
62. 1
111.7
113. 1
113. 8
117. 2

300
400
500
500
300
400
500
600

91
122
152
183
91
122
152
183

kg/sec

89.0 0.007
88.5
.007
90.0
.006
162. 0
.025
164. 0
.023
.021
165. 0
170. 0
.016

Air pressure
differential

Ib/sec

0.016
.015
.013
.055
.050
.045
.035

OF

350
363
394

170
195
250

Air flow
(two seals)

Seal
temperature

ft/sec

N/cm
27
36
45
54
27
36
45
54

psi

Self-acting face seal evaluation

Speed
m/sec

Seal
temperature

ft/sec

N/cn>2
27
36
45
36
45
54
63

Air flow
(two seals)

300
400
500
600
300
400
500
600

23.4
23. 1
23. 1
22.1
111. 4
110. 7
109. 6
107. 6

kg/sec

Ib/sec

34.0 <0.0006
33. 5
<.0006
33.5
<.0006
32.0
.0011
161. 5
.0023
160.5
.0032
159. 0
.0036
156. 0
.0046

<0.0013
<.0013
<.0013
.0024
.0050
.0070
.0079
.0102

333
352
371
392
364
373
386
402

140
174
210
246
196
212
236
263

psi

'

o
oo
i
W

COMPRESSOR
PRESSURE

Fig. 1. - Single stage labyrinth seal.

SUMP
PRESSURE

FAN
PRESSURE

VENT
PO'

COMPRESSOR
DISCHARGE
PRESSURE

CS-56863

Fig. 2. - Multiple stage labyrinth seal system.

HOUSING^
FLOATING RING

AIR LEAKAGE s
AIR SIDE

OIL SIDE

(a) FLOATING RING SEAL

ANTI-ROTATION PIN
WAVE SPRING
1- SEGMENTED
AIR LEAKAGE

(b) UNBALANCED CIRCUMFERENTIAL SEGMENTED-RING SEAL

WAVE SPRING

- HOUSING

SECONDARY SEAL ROTATING SEAT

(c) FACE SEAL

Figure 3. - Conventional shaft seals (ref. 5).

REPRODUCIBILITY OP THE
ORIGINAL PAGE IS POOR
v-12 SELF-ACTING
\ LIFT PADS EQUALLY SPACED

60.960 .mm dia.

(2.40 in.)
51.816 mm dia.
(2.04 in.)
0.0229/0.0152 mm
(0.0009/0.0006 in.

66.4144 mm dia.
\ (2.536in.)
-0.889 mm
(0.035 in.)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

vD
O^

SPRING PLATE
COMPRESSION SPRING
SPRING PIN
HOUSING
CARRIER

oo

^THERMOCOUPLE
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

PISTON RING (SECONDARY SEAL)

BELLOWS SPACER
OIL DAM AND HEAT SHIELD
ROTATING SEAT
NOSE PIECE

Figure 4. - Self-acting (ace seal design (ref. 5i.

.05 r LABYRINTH SEALS, ROTATING

RING & WORN OUT
CIRCUMFERENTIAL SEALS-

.10 ro
LU

8 .04

.08 - 3

53
i
i/i

.06

LU

O
fc

cc.

_ i .03

.04

.02

_!i
-

CONVENTIONAL
FACE SEAL
/- SELF-ACTING
/ FACE SEAL

.02

,01

n
PRESSURE DIFFERENCE, N/CM

50

100

150

PRESSURE DIFFERENCE, PSI

Fig. 5. - Comparison of seal configurations.

200

LU >-

u-i i o: oo
^ CD |_ i

i|i
H> <C uj Q_
uj >
1 o;

o
I
Q_

o
o

oo

Q-

_
oo

5
o
CT>

c
0}

_i
<.

O
Q-

e ts
O

Q-

co

CO

>- LU
CD 00

iSOl

JO !N30d3d

s.
in
3.

IX

00

<c

o>

cm
CO
<c

L
3

10r-

Q>-

O
Q
D
O

o
tt

HIGH BYPASS RATIO FAN

RESEARCH COMPRESSOR A
RESEARCH COMPRESSOR C
MULTISTAGE COMPRESSOR

0.03

0.01
CLEARANCE/SPAN'

vD
O
O

Fig. 8. - Typical compressor efficiency penalty as a function of blade

clearance-to-span ratio (Ref. 2).

oo
I

-IMPULSE
JURBINE
x

LU

o;

LU

-4
-8
-12

-16
LU

REACTION
TURBINE- '

-20

o -;

10

12

ROTOR TIP CLEARANCE, PERCENT OF

ANNULAR PASSAGE HEIGHT

Fig. 9. - Effect of rotor tip clearance on

performance for various turbines
(Ref. 16).

JL_

KNIFE

[I
A

EDGE

THERMAL
BUMP

SHROUD
SEGMENT
O.D. OF
LABYRINTH
KNIFE EDGE

INFRARED
PYROMETER

Figure 10. - Local thermal response of labyrinth knife edge rubbing against
a shroud segment in bench tests.

Figure 11. - Labyrinth disk and knife edge showing heat discoloration due to
thermal bumps generated in rubbing contact against a shroud specimen.
Rubbing speed, 183 m/s (600 ft/sec).

oo

ro

01 x 'H3JGW-N01M3N
I A
I
LT\
IT\ \r Lf\

<^i

81- 'Nl '

uS

e^

LT\

NOIlDVrd3iNI

no
MATERIAL TYPE
A,
B,
C,
D,

100

90

HONEYCOMB
POROUS CERMET
POROUS METAL
FIBER METAL

=J}^ EXPERIMENTAL

80

"s
o
-

70

MATERIAL
TYPE

60

CO

o
2

50
40

30

20

10

1033

1144
1265
TEMPERATURE, C

1366

1400

1600
1800
TEMPERATURE, F

2000

Fig. 14. - Erosion rates of shroud material specimens;

gas velocity, 0.35Mach number; A^O^, particle
rate, 2.72kg/hr (6lb/hr).

NASA-Lewis