The Influence of the Temperature Rise on the Sealing Performance of the Rotating Magnetic Fluid Seal

The magnetic fluid seal is widely used in the high-speed mechanical devices. Also, the temperature of the seal increases with the viscous heating under the high shearing rate in the magnetic fluid. However, the influence of the temperature on the sealing performance has not been studied quantitatively in the available research. In this article, the change rule of magnetic fluid temperature and the influence on the sealing performance are researched through the simulation and experiment methods. The thermal field simulation is conducted with the heat generation in the fluid. To calculate the decrease of the magnetic properties quantitatively, the magnetization curves under different temperatures are measured to carry out the relationship between the saturation magnetization and temperature. Based on the magnetization curve result, the two-phase flow between air and magnetic fluid is solved under different shaft rotation speeds with the influence of temperature change. Besides, the sealing experiment is conducted with the highest rotation speed of 8000 rpm. The results of the simulation and experiment show good consistency, and the sealing capacity decreases with the rise of rotation speed.