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Abstract

A compacted knitted wire seal and a method of forming the seal. The method comprises the steps of knitting a flattened wire to form a tubular sock, rolling the sock on itself, heating the rolled sock in an atmosphere containing oxygen to anneal the wire in the sock and to form oxides on the surfaces of the wire, and compressing the annealed and oxidized ring to form a compacted wire ring seal of preferably V-shaped cross section. The seal made by the method has sufficient flexibility to permit it to compensate for minor irregularities in the configurations of elements with which it is positioned in engagement, and the oxides on the surfaces of the wire in the seal improve the leak-rate qualities of the seal. The seal is particularly effective for use in automotive catalytic converters, wherein it is utilized for sealing between monolith and housing portions of converters.

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First Claim