Patent ID: 8616554

Claim:
A method of sealing a liquid region from a gas region across an annular surface of a rotating shaft utilizing a plurality of adjoining annularly sealing ring segments facing the rotating shaft, each sealing ring segment having a dead end circumferential groove formed within a shaft-side face of each sealing ring segment at a position closer to the liquid region than to the gas region such that, when the sealing ring segments are positioned proximate the annular surface, the dead end circumferential groove of each sealing ring segment extends arcuately in direction of shaft rotation, and a plurality of additional grooves extending across the shaft-side face of each sealing ring segment leading to the dead end circumferential groove wherein the additional grooves are in fluid communication with the dead end circumferential groove, each additional groove is a hydrodynamic inclined pumping groove wherein each hydrodynamic inclined pumping groove has a unique depth comprising the steps of: directing flow generated by the rotating shaft along the additional grooves and into the dead end circumferential groove such that a fluid is pressurized as it flows along the additional grooves and into the dead end circumferential groove; creating a fluid seal around the rotating shaft as the fluid within the dead end circumferential groove is urged toward the rotating shaft, thereby, maintaining the fluid seal between the rotating shaft and the sealing ring segments during rotation of the rotating shaft; directing flow generated by the rotating shaft along the additional grooves and into the dead end circumferential groove by way of the hydrodynamic inclined pumping grooves; and creating variable pressures among the hydrodynamic inclined pumping grooves that allow the fluid seal to continually pressurize flow under varying circumstances.