Variable Gap Sealing Technology of a Hydraulic Cylinder Based on Magnetic Shape Memory Alloy

The synergistic control of resistance reduction and sealing poses challenges to enhancing the rapid dynamic response ability of servo hydraulic cylinders; the key to solving this problem is effectively controlling the sealing gap value. In this study, a micro-variation between the hydraulic cylinder and the piston based on the disadvantage of conventional seals, constant gap seals, and lip gap seals was constructed; MSMA assist support blocks were designed on the piston to form a gap seal strip; then, the sealing gap value could be changed by controlling the magnetic field intensity. Simultaneously, the effects of magnetic field strength, parts-manufacturing precision, temperature, and hysteresis on the micro-variation in the MSMA were analyzed, and effective solutions were proposed. Finally, experiments on the magnetic field, temperature, and hysteresis were conducted by the measurement system. The results showed that the variable value of the sealing gap with the MSMA is feasible under ideal conditions, and can effectively change the amount of MSMA expansion by controlling the magnetic field strength, temperature, preload, etc., and then change the amount of the sealing gap of the hydraulic cylinder. This is the key to achieving friction and sealing control, which plays a crucial and active role in improving the efficiency of hydraulic systems. However, the impact of hysteresis effects cannot be ignored, which will be the main problem to be solved in the future.