Trelleborg Sealing Solutions Provides Breakthrough in Vane Sealing Technology

Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, a worldwide leading supplier of high-quality sealing and bearing systems, announces advances in vane seal design and manufacturing that have helped make viable the possibility of using rotary vane actuators across a wide range of engineering applications. These include contemporary engineering designs such as the control of aircraft wing flaps, anti-roll suspension systems on high-performance premium cars and machine tools, such as multi-directional tube bending equipment.

The breakthrough by Trelleborg Sealing Solutions in the effective and economic development of vane seals came about through a pioneering development of an innovative method for stamping sintered Turcon(R) plates. This process replaces high-cost milling, previously required to achieve the rectangular seals with razor-sharp edges, essential to achieving sealing integrity within rotary actuator applications. These latest manufacturing advances are providing distinct cost and performance benefits to customers and extending the potential applications for rotary vane actuators in many areas of industry.

“Effective sealing of rotary vane actuators is a challenge, as the shape to be sealed is rectangular, and the four corners of the rectangular seals must be razor-sharp. In the event of there not being a perfectly sealed surface, sealing integrity may be compromised as liquid could leak from one working space to another,” said Antonio Garcia, Aerospace Segment Manager for Trelleborg Sealing Solutions Americas. “It was thought the only effective method of producing these sharp edged rectangular seals was through a high-cost milling process. We proposed an alternative concept, to stamp sintered plates in Turcon(R) PTFE-based material, to the shape of the seal.”

Following attempts to achieve this by one of Europe’s leading stamping companies, Trelleborg Sealing Solutions turned to their own production facility in Denmark, where vane seals with razor sharp edges were successfully produced using the Trelleborg Sealing Solutions proprietary Turcon(R) PTFE-based material. By utilizing this high performance material, sealing integrity was ensured at both room temperature and extremes, ranging from -40 degreesF/ -40 degreesC to well above +212 degreesF/ +100 degreesC and at pressure exceeding 2,176psi / 150 bar.

The majority of actuators are designed with one or two vanes but versions are available with three or more vanes. In a two vane rotary actuator, a rotor replaces the piston, which operates within linear hydraulic cylinders, with two vanes attached. When fluid pressure is applied to two of the four working chambers, the actuator turns, necessitating perfect sealing to prevent leakage across the chambers. This type of seal is called a vane seal.

Trelleborg Sealing Solutions, formerly known as Busak+Shamban, is one of the world’s leading developers, manufacturers and suppliers of precision seals. They support their aerospace, industrial and automotive customers through 30 production facilities and more than 40 marketing companies globally. Within their portfolio are some of the longest established sealing brands, including Chase Walton, Dowty, Forsheda, Palmer Chenard, Shamban, Skega and Stefa along with a large number of proprietary products and materials such as Turcon(R), Zurcon(R), Orkot(R), Isolast(R), Stepseal(R) and Wills Rings(R).

Trelleborg is a global industrial group whose leading positions are based on advanced polymer technology and in-depth applications know-how. Trelleborg develops high-performance solutions that seal, damp and protect in demanding industrial environments. The Trelleborg Group had annual sales 2007 of approximately SEK 31 billion (5.1 billion USD), with about 25,000 employees in 40 countries. The Group comprises four business areas: Trelleborg Engineered Systems, Trelleborg Automotive, Trelleborg Sealing Solutions and Trelleborg Wheel Systems. The Trelleborg share has been listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange since 1964 and is listed on the OMX Nordic List.