The Particle Breakage Effect on Abrasive Wear Process of Rubber/Steel Seal Pairs under High/Low Pressure

Abstract

Pressure has a significant effect on rubber seal performance in the abrasive environments of drilling. The micro-clastic rocks intruding into the seal interface are prone to fracture, which will change the wear process and mechanism, but this process is not yet known at present. To explore this issue, abrasive wear tests were carried out to compare the failure characteristics of the particles and the variation wear process under high/low pressures. The results show that non-round particles are prone to fracture under different pressures, resulting in different damage patterns and wear loss on the rubber surface. A single particle force model was established at the soft rubber–hard metal interface. Three typical breakage types of particles were analyzed, including ground, partially fractured, and crushed. At high load, more particles were crushed, while at low load, shear failure was more likely to occur at the edges of particles. These different particle fracture characteristics not only change the particle size, but also the state of motion and thus the subsequent friction and wear processes. Therefore, the tribological behavior and wear mechanism of abrasive wear are different at high pressure and low pressure. Higher pressure reduces the invasion of the abrasive particles, but also intensifies the tearing and wear of the rubber. However, no significant differences in damage were found for steel counterpart throughout the wear process under high/low load tests. These results are critical to understanding the abrasive wear of rubber seals in drilling engineering.

Inspired by Earthworms and Leeches: The Effects of Cylindrical Pit Arrays on the Performance of Piston-Cylinder Liner Friction Pairs

“…Rubber materials are widely used in various friction and sealing parts. Relevant scholars' research on the friction and wear of these parts has mainly focused on rubber seals [1][2][3][4], rubber tires [5,6] and rubber conveyor belts [7]. For instance, Zhang et al conducted research on O-rings [1].…”

“…They studied the effects of the pre-compression amount, fluid pressure and friction coefficient on the static and dynamic sealing performance of O-rings. Moreover, Zhou et al delved into the significant impact of pressure on the rubber-sealing capabilities within an abrasive drilling environment [4]. They meticulously analyzed the wear process and mechanisms resulting from the invasion of micro-rock debris at the sealing interface.…”