The humble hydraulic seals are unsung heroes of mechanical machines. The hydraulic seal contains oil or hydraulic fluid, ensuring that the pressure is contained in the piston without passing the piston head and to maintain the dirt and the environment of hydraulic actions.
There are three main types of hydraulic seals used in the industry and for transportation vehicles; piston seal, rod seal and wiper seal. This is mostly used in combination to perform certain specific functions.
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Rod Seal is a dynamic or static hydraulic seal type that contains hydraulic actions within pressurized systems throughout the movement cycle.
The wiper seal is usually a static type seal used to ‘wipe’ the rod to prevent dirt and other liquids out of the hydraulic system and protect the rod seal so that it is not damaged by grit.
The piston seal is a dynamic seal that moves through the cylinder as part of its operation.The piston seal is the seal that often needs to contain pressure on the cylinder during power strokes. As a piston moving in both directions, modern seals have complicated shapes and can do more than one task.