Combined Three-Dimensional Fluid Dynamics and Mechanical Modeling of Brush Seals

Development and application of a combined 3D computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and 3D bristle bending model for brush seals is described. The CFD model is created using commercial CFD mesh generation and solver software. A small gap is assumed between all bristles in the CFD model so as to avoid meshing problems at contact points and allow for imperfections in bristle geometry. The mechanical model is based on linear beam bending theory and allows large numbers of bristles to be modelled with arbitrary bristle-to-bristle contact and imported from the CFD solution. Deformed geometries may be exported directly to the mesh generation software, allowing iterative solution of the coupled aerodynamic/mechanical problem.