Investigation of Premature Water Pump Seal Failures

Automotive water pump seals which have failed prematurely during in-service use have been characterized using a variety of analytical methods. Nearly one hundred failed seals collected over the past several years from local automotive dealerships, major automotive manufacturers, coolant related fleet tests, and pump seal manufacturers have been examined as part of this study. This has enabled us to determine the chemical composition and morphology of surface deposits on failed seals and classify their failure mode. The main failure mode found for domestic in-service automobiles is filming, a term used to describe a failure type in which deposits form between the sealing surfaces resulting in a leak path. This paper reports on the composition, morphology and possible causes of in-service filming failures. In addition, the results of this study will be contrasted with those reported in other studies which found film transfer as the main type of failure.