Abstract: The beam seal has a broad application prospect in the aviation hydraulic system due to its high-pressure resistance, self-tightening and self-sealing features. A type of female joint structure with elliptical groove is proposed. The elastic-plastic finite element contact model of the beam seal is established. The analysis with the maximum contact pressure as the evaluation index of sealing performance shows that the fluid pressure in the pipe can improve the sealing performance of the beam seal, and there is an optimal design value for the applied pre-tightening force. The experimental results of the contact bandwidth on the mating surfaces of the female and male joints under different pre-tightening force are in good agreement with the numerical simulation, which verifies the effectiveness of the finite element model and analysis method. Furthermore, the main structural parameters of the beam seal are analyzed by orthogonal array method, and the sensitivity of the structural parameters to the sealing performance of the two sealing is obtained by the range method. It is found that the long and short axis of the elliptical groove, the nominal contact bandwidth of the first seal and the section width of the U-shaped beam have significant influence on the sealing performance of the beam seal.

Key words: beam seal, elastic-plastic finite element, sealing performance, sensitivity, orthogonal array method