The work presented previously by Tonder and Salant (1992) is extended
and generalized. In that work it was shown that the fine, axially orie
nted striations found on some lip-seals, under certain conditions, cou
ld lead to the total suppression of leakage through a fully lubricated
seal. In the present work the behavior of the lubricant annulus is st
udied, as are the conditions required for leakage suppression. If the
latter are met, it is shown that when a certain parameter-here called
the seal number-is increased, the lubricant annulus width will shrink.
This will lead to a reduction of the friction force. It is further sh
own that the striated roughness will also generate a radial force or l
oad capacity. This effect does not involve local cavitation.