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Transitions of Wear Characteristics for Rubber/Steel Seal Pairs During the Abrasive Wear Process

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Abstract

Abrasive wear resulting from the microclastic rock is a common failure phenomenon in the drilling environment that often limits the sealing ability and the service life of seals. In this study, the friction and wear process of fluoro rubber (FKM) seals against 304 stainless steel (SS304) after one single entry of SiO2 abrasives were investigated. The influence of the changes in particle state on friction coefficient evolution, wear loss evolution, wear morphologies, and wear mechanisms were discussed in detail. The results indicate that the presence of abrasive particles dispersed between the sealing interfaces clearly improves the friction performance of the seal pairs and deteriorates the wear performance of the metal counterpart. The movement and breakage of particles after one single entering into the sealing interface were obtained. And on this basis, the stable wear process can be divided into three stages. In addition, the main causes contributed to this change of wear mechanisms are the random movement and process of continuous breakdown of abrasive particles. Furthermore, the transition of the wear mechanism that clearly describes the wearing behavior of the seal pairs under these abrasive wear conditions was identified. The results of this study enhanced our understanding of the abrasive wear degradation of rubber seal in practical drilling applications.

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Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.42072340) and the National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFC0603405).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Engineering and Technology, China University of Geosciences(Beijing), No. 29 Xueyuan Road, Haidian, Beijing, 100083, China

    Qin Zhou, Shuaishuai Li, Kai Zhang, Kun Qin, Minghao Lv, Weihao Sun & Tongxin Yuan

  2. Key Laboratory On Deep Geo-Drilling Technology of the Ministry of Natural Resources, China University of Geosciences(Beijing), No. 29 Xueyuan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100083, China

    Qin Zhou, Shuaishuai Li, Kai Zhang, Kun Qin, Minghao Lv, Weihao Sun & Tongxin Yuan

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  1. Qin Zhou
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Correspondence to Kai Zhang.

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Zhou, Q., Li, S., Zhang, K. et al. Transitions of Wear Characteristics for Rubber/Steel Seal Pairs During the Abrasive Wear Process. Tribol Lett 69, 101 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11249-021-01480-4

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