BOOSTER 

GAS COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL

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BOOSTER  • OBJECTIVE
GAS  After completing this course, participants able to:
COMPRESSOR • State the function of the dry seal and buffer gas system
DRY GAS SEAL • Identify the dry seal and buffer gas system
components
• State the function the dry seal and buffer gas system
components

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BOOSTER  • SYSTEM FUNCTION
GAS  • Prevents contamination of process gas with the bearing
lubricating oil and process gas from entering the oil
COMPRESSOR drain lines
DRY GAS SEAL • Utilizes air/nitrogen and gas
• Basically Dry Gas Seal consists of:
• Mating Ring/seat – (rotating part)
• Primary Ring/face – (non‐rotating part)

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BOOSTER  • SYSTEM FUNCTION
GAS  • Air Seal
• Separate seal gas from the lubricating oil
COMPRESSOR
• Injected between a pair of seal rings at a regulated pressure
DRY GAS SEAL of 10 psig above the vent pressure
• Buffer air leaking past the outboard seal mixes with the
lubricating oil and drains back to the oil tank
• Buffer air leaking past the inboard seal escapes through the
gas/air vent system

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BOOSTER  • SYSTEM FUNCTION
GAS  • Gas Seal
• Separate product gas from the buffer air
COMPRESSOR
• Consist of a dry‐face type seal and labyrinth seal
DRY GAS SEAL • Injected to the seals at a regulated 20 psia above suction
pressure
• Seal gas flows outward across the dry face seal and escapes
through the vent system
• Remainder flows across the labyrinth seal and is routed to
compressor suction

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BOOSTER  • SYSTEM FUNCTION
GAS 
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL

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BOOSTER  • SYSTEM FUNCTION
GAS 
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL

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BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  • Features
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL • Cartridge seal ‐ relatively simple to fit

• No wet seal system

• Gas lubricated

• Non‐contacting faces

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BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  • Some of the Benefits
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL • Non‐contacting
• no wear ‐ life of equipment (refurb 3‐5 years)
• increased reliability ‐ less downtime
• reduced maintenance
• reduced heat generation ‐ no cooling is required

• Gas lubricated
• no oil system ‐ reduced weight, increased space, reduced 
maintenance
• low power consumption ‐ typically <5kW
• improved operational safety 9
BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  • Spiral Groove Principles
COMPRESSOR Gas Enters the 
DRY GAS SEAL groove and is induced 
towards the centre

 The spiral grooves are the heart of the non‐contacting 
design
 Precision depth grooves generate lift
 No wear and reduced frictional heat generation 10
BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  • Gap – Film Stiffness
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL

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BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  Spiral Groove Principles
COMPRESSOR
“Lift off” – the event that the Mating Ring and Primary Ring 
DRY GAS SEAL separate so that a gap of 3 microns is formed.

"Lift Off" occurs due to:

• Hydrostatic Force – Pressure

• Hydrodynamic Force – Groove rotation / speed

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BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  Spiral Groove Principles
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL

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BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  Spiral Groove Pattern
COMPRESSOR The Spiral Groove pattern is uni-directional only

DRY GAS SEAL C.W. Rotation

Direction of Rotation
Gas is pumped
inwards by rotating
spiral grooves

Mating Ring

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BOOSTER  • Seal Design & Operating Principles
GAS  Spiral Groove Pattern
COMPRESSOR Groove pattern – Bi Directional

DRY GAS SEAL CW or CCW Rotation

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BOOSTER  • SYSTEM COMPONENTS
GAS  • BUFFER AIR DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE REGULATOR
COMPRESSOR • Maintain buffer air at a preset delta pressure between the
supply pressure with the vent pressure
DRY GAS SEAL
• BUFFER GAS DIFFERENTIAL PRESSURE REGULATOR
• Maintain the buffer gas supply pressure at preset level above
suction pressure
• BUFFER AIR & GAS FILTER/COALESCER
• Filter impurities from the air/nitrogen and buffer gas
• BUFFER AIR SHUTOFF SOLENOID VALVE
• to open buffer air supply valve to the outboard seals when
compressor pressure at 3 psig
• GAGE, SWITCH
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BOOSTER  • Seal Gas System Schematic
GAS 
COMPRESSOR
DRY GAS SEAL

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Terima Kasih

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[Presentation Content]

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