Analysis of Hollow Hyper-Elastic Gaskets Filled with Air Using Fluid Cavity Approach

Hyper-elastic seals are extensively used in automotive applications for sealing various joints in assembly. They are also used in sealing battery packs. They are used in various sizes and shapes. Most of the gaskets used are solid gaskets. Hollow gaskets are also being used. Hollow gaskets typically have a fluid like air trapped inside. Analyzing these hollow gaskets also requires involving the physics of the fluid inside. The trapped fluid affects the performance of the gasket like contact pressure and width. Objective of this study is to analyze the hollow gasket performance including the effect of air trapped inside. The effect of air on performance of the hollow seal is also studied. Fluid Cavity capability in ABAQUS was selected after literature study to simulate the effect of trapped fluid (Air) on seal performance. The surface-based fluid cavity capability provides the coupling needed to analyze situations in which the cavity can be assumed completely filled by fluid with uniform properties and state. The surface-based fluid cavity capability can be used to model a liquid or gas-filled structure. It supersedes the element-based hydrostatic fluid cavity capability in functionality and does not require the user to define fluid or fluid link elements. A 2D hollow gasket was modelled and the properties of air inside the cavity (space surrounded by solid hyper elastic gasket) were specified using fluid cavity approach in ABAQUS. The seal performance was compared to gasket without fluid in cavity. The results showed variation in performance of seal with and without air.