Study on Fluid Flow and Heat Transfer in Seal Chamber of Hydrodynamic Mechanical Seals in Reactor Coolant Pump

To study the distribution of the flow and temperature field in a type of hydrodynamic mechanical seal of a nuclear reactor coolant pump, a three-dimensional model of the mechanical seal and the seal chamber is established based on the software Pro/E. The N-S equations and energy equation coupling with the k-ε turbulence model are solved based on ANSYS Fluent. The heat generation between the mechanical seal rings and the heat transfer distribution in the sealing chamber is studied. The fluid flow and temperature field of the mechanical seals is analyzed. The results show that the pressure distribution of the mechanical seals is divided into the high-pressure zone and the low-pressure zone by the sealing end face. The liquid film pressure in the mechanical seal end faces gradually decreases from the outer radius to the inner radius. The highest temperature appears at the sealing face, and the temperature decreases gradually away from the sealing face. The viscous heat in the liquid film is transferred away through the seal rings and the heat convection of the fluid flow in the sealing chamber. The pumping ring of the mechanical seal strengths the heat convection of the end faces.