Behaviors of main drive sealing structure in a slurry shield machine

This paper investigates the main drive sealing structure of a slurry shield machine, considering the deformation under the working conditions. The Navier-Stokes equations are simplified to derive the control equations for the flow field. A flow field model under standard working load is obtained through fluid-structure coupling method. The ability of the intact main drive sealing structure to resist the intrusion of external water clusters is studied. A worn-out flow field model is created and its sealing capability is evaluated. The results show that, under the condition of an intact main drive sealing structure, it can effectively block the intrusion of external water clusters. However, when the sealing ring wears out, the unrealistic increase in grease consumption leads to the conclusion that the sealing structure fails under these conditions. Optimization suggestions are proposed for the sealing structure to reduce the possibility of water cluster retention.