Sliding seal member

Abstract

[Object] An object of the present invention is to provide a sliding seal member having the characteristics of silicon carbide, such as hardness and low wear, and further having preferable sealing property and lubricating property. [Solving Means] There is provided a sliding seal member having a sliding surface which is slidable with other sliding member so as to seal a fluid by the sliding surface, comprising carbon fibers which are oriented substantially parallel to the sliding surface in a longitudinal direction of the carbon fibers and silicon carbide existing between the carbon fibers.

1 . A sliding seal member having a sliding surface which is slidable with other member so as to seal a fluid by the sliding surface, comprising:
 carbon fibers which are oriented substantially parallel to the sliding surface in a longitudinal direction of the carbon fibers, and   silicon carbide existing between the carbon fibers.   
     
     
         2 . The sliding seal member as set forth in  claim 1 , wherein
 the carbon fibers form bundles in which the carbon fibers are oriented substantially in the same longitudinal direction of the carbon fibers, and the silicon carbide exists between the carbon fibers forming the bundles.   
     
     
         3 . The sliding seal member as set forth in  claim 2 , further comprising:
 non-fibrous carbon existing between one of the carbon fiber bundles and the other one of the carbon fiber bundles adjacent thereto.   
     
     
         4 . The sliding seal member as set forth in  claim 3 , wherein
 the carbon fiber bundles formed on the sliding surface are randomly oriented.   
     
     
         5 . The sliding seal member as set forth in  claim 4 , wherein
 an area ratio of the silicon carbide on the sliding surface ranges from 35% or more to less than 85%.   
     
     
         6 . The sliding seal member as set forth in  claim 5 , wherein
 an arithmetic average roughness Ra of the sliding surface is 0.2 μm or less.