Anyone designing a shaft seal must answer a multitude of questions. In a sense, that’s really what good design work is all about: determining which questions to ask and where to find the answers. Though the sealing industry offers its practitioners a multitude of exotic terms and explanations with which to grapple, a clear understanding of a few simple concepts will help you ask the most pertinent questions and find the most productive answers. Since the essence of a successful shaft seal is the lip material, here’s a quick review, beginning with the basic building block of all materials, the atom.

ATOMS
MOLECULES
POLYMERS
ADDITIVES
VULCANIZATION
VISCO-ELASTICITY