General Electric Company
Face seal assembly with thermal management circuit and an associated method thereof

Abstract:

A face seal assembly including a thermal fluid circuit, a turbomachine including the face seal assembly and a method of operating the turbomachine are disclosed. The face seal assembly includes a seal ring including a seal bearing face, at least one internal cavity including a cavity inlet and a cavity outlet. The face seal assembly further including a fluid inlet channel in fluid communication with the cavity inlet of the at least one internal cavity and a pressurized fluid and a fluid outlet port in fluid communication with the cavity outlet of the at least one internal cavity. The at least one internal cavity, the fluid inlet channel and the fluid outlet port define a thermal fluid circuit providing thermal management of the seal ring. In the turbomachine, the face seal assembly is disposed between a stationary component and a rotating component including a rotating component bearing face.