Abstract: It is nearly impossible to fully describe the dynamics and leakage characteristics of a padded finger seal system since its structure and operation conditions are so complex. In this article, the relations between the dynamical parameters, structure parameters, and operational parameters in the system are obtained through simulation by means of the finite element method. A two degree-of-freedom mass-spring-damp model for the padded finger seal system is proposed in order that the dynamics and leakage characteristics of the system can be analyzed in this model. The present research demonstrates that favorable dynamics and leakage characteristics can be obtained from this finger seal system and the structure and operation parameters are reasonably selected. The equivalent dynamic model presented in the current work provides a valuable approach for further study of the padded finger seal system. This equivalent dynamics model is validated by experimental data from other reference articles.

Key words: padded finger seal, equivalent dynamics model, finite element method, dynamics, leakage