Abstract
In this paper, a three elastic body sliding contact problem is modeled to investigate more precise wear mechanisms related with the sealing surface. A 3-D finite element contact model, a small spherical elastic particle, PTFE seal and steel surface, is solved using a nonlinear finite element code MARC. The deformed seal and steel surface shapes, von-Mises and principal stress distributions are obtained for different seal sliding distances. The entrapped small particle within PTFE seal results in very high stresses on the steel surface which exceeded its yield strength and produce plastic deformation such as groove and torus. The sealing surface could also be worn down by sub-surface fatigue due to intervening small particles together with the well-known abrasive wear. Therefore the proposed contact model adopted in this paper can be applied in design of various sealing systems, and further studies are required.
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