Stability of multi orifice active tilting-pad journal bearings

The stability properties of actively lubricated tilting-pad journal bearings are investigated theoretically. The bearing preload factor and control system gains are varied, and stable and unstable regions are identified. It is seen, that the control system influences bearing stability, and that the nature and magnitude of this influence depends on the rotor mass, preload factor and rotational speed. Furthermore, it is shown that assuming the bearing pads to be rigid can produce a substantial error. A rigid pad model will overpredict the stable range of the bearing, thus it may lead to failure if trusted.     

Multi-orifice active tilting-pad journal bearings—Harnessing of synergetic coupling effects

The dynamic performance of tilting-pad journal bearings with controllable radial oil injection is theoretically investigated, exploring the synergetic effect between passive elastohydrodynamics and active radial lubricant injection.The flexible tilting-pads are modelled as linearly elastic using finite elements. To reduce computational work, a pseudo-modal reduction is applied.Curves of dynamic bearing coefficients as well as the corresponding phase-magnitude plots are presented.Strong synergy between elastohydrodynamics and active control is observed, in particular for bearings with injection orifices far from the pivot line.     

An analytical model for complete dynamical coefficients of a tilting-pad journal bearing

An analytical model as well as calculation method is presented for the complete dynamic characteristics of tilting-pad journal bearing. Using this model, the global oil-film forces, stiffness and damping coefficients acting on the journal and all pads can be calculated in a highly concise expression. To improve the computational efficiency, a fast algorithm for calculating the oil-film force and Jacobian of the local pad system is proposed and the Newton–Raphson method is used for solving the equilibrium positions of the journal and all pads. Taking a rigid rotor symmetrically supported on two identical five-shoe tilting-pad journal bearing as an example, the complete dynamic characteristics, damping natural frequency and the stability are calculated. Compared with the traditional reduced model, the numerical results show that the dynamic characteristics can be calculated efficiently and succinctly. The stability can also be overestimated by using the reduced model.     

Rotordynamic modelling of a hydrodynamic pivoted-pad thrust bearing

The rotordynamic characteristics of a hydrodynamic pivoted-pad thrust bearing are investigated in this paper. Firstly, the rotordynamic coefficients of a single pad are defined in the case of small perturbation. The Reynolds equation and its perturbed forms are solved by using the boundary element method (BEM). An iterative procedure is proposed to determine the static positions of the thrust pads when the static tilt of the runner is considered by using the Newton–Raphson method. The characteristics of the thrust bearing are obtained by using an approach based on a coordinate transformation principle.     

Analysis of heavy duty tilting-pad journal bearing taking into account pad distortion and possible adoption of rubber pad segments

In this work a comparative study has been made between the thermo-hydrodynamic performance of a three shoe tilting-pad journal bearing with rigid and elastic pads subjected to unbalance load. A case study of a bearing adopting three rubber pad segments has also been studied. The distortion of the elastic pad is introduced into the distribution of the film thickness through an iterative scheme to assess its effect on the load carrying capacity of the bearing. A finite element mesh is used to calculate the distortion of the elastic pad while a finite difference mesh is used to calculate the pressure field in the lubricant film. Results have shown a number of interesting conclusions regarding the adoption of rubber pad segments instead of tilting-pads. There is an increase in minimum oil film thickness when using elastic pad or even rubber pad segments compared with rigid pads. Also the maximum pressure and load carrying capacity are not significantly affected.     

Experimental investigation into the performance of an aerostatic industrial thrust bearing

Load and flow versus air-gap curves and stability maps have been obtained for an industrial externally-pressurized air-lubricated thrust bearing with a central restrictor. Supply pressure and pocket depth were treated as parameters. Bearing stiffness was estimated by using a computer to fit a polynomial type curve to the test data. The results show that whereas the effect of inserting a pocket into the bearing improves its load capacity, there is no significant improvement in film stiffness at design conditions. The suggestion is made that the diameter of the orifice in the restrictor should be increased. As pocket depth is increased beyond the design value the bearing becomes prone to pneumatic hammer.     

Experimental assessment of hydrostatic thrust bearing performance

This work presents an experimental study to assess the performance characteristics of hydrostatic thrust bearings. A test rig is designed for testing two configurations of hydrostatic bearings compensated by a capillary tube, one with a mid-circular recess and the other with multi-sectors (four recesses of different recess radii ratios). The performance characteristics have been measured, namely, oil film thickness, recess pressure, pressure distribution and oil flow rate. A specially devised computer program using an iterative technique has been adopted to compute numerically the pressure distribution and predict other performance characteristics. Good agreement has been obtained between predicted theoretical performance and that experimentally measured. The results demonstrate that the bearing recess size and location have a great influence on the performance of the hydrostatic thrust bearing.     

Thermoelastohydrodynamic analysis of the static performance of tilting-pad journal bearings with the Newton–Raphson method

Thermoelastohydrodynamic lubrication (TEHD) analysis is presented to investigate the static performance of tilting-pad journal bearings. A completely numerical solution is obtained. The Newton–Raphson method is employed to predict the bearing characteristics of the hydrodynamic pressure, the eccentricity and the pad attitude angles simultaneously. For the temperature calculation, three-dimensional (3D) energy equations for the fluid under each pad and 3D heat transfer equations for the pads are solved using a sequential sweeping method. The elastic deformation and thermal expansion of each pad are calculated with the 20-node isoparametric finite element method. It is found that the Newton–Raphson method is a smart and efficient method. The results show that the elastic deformation due to the hydrodynamic pressure and the influence of the temperature elevation play an important role in the calculated bearing system.     

Assessment of techniques for estimating oil-film bearing coefficients

In recent years methods have been developed for estimating oil-film stiffness and damping coefficients based upon techniques drawn from the field of control engineering. The stage has been reached where these new methods need to be evaluated, in relation to more traditional approaches as a prelude to future developments. That is the purpose of this paper.Experiments performed on a squeeze-film bearing rig are used to explain the new methods. Some current trends are described; in particular, an approach is outlined for estimating oil-film coefficients from operational data without introducing a test signal.     

推力球轴承实体保持架的优化设计

针对推力球轴承实体保持架加工中存在的问题,对保持架的结构及工艺进行了改进,节省了保持架材料,减小了保持架与钢球之间的摩擦阻力,降低了工人的劳动强度,提高了轴承的装配效率。     

Theoretical considerations of static and dynamic characteristics of air foil thrust bearing with tilt and slip flow

The thrust pad of the rotor is used to sustain the axial force generated due to the pressure difference between the compressor and turbine sides of turbomachinery such as gas turbines, compressors, and turbochargers. Furthermore, this thrust pad has a role to maintain and determines the attitude of the rotor. In a real system, it also helps reinforce the stiffness and damping of the journal bearing. This study was performed for the purpose of analyzing the characteristics of the air foil thrust bearing. The model for the air foil thrust bearing used in this study is composed of two parts: one is an inclined plane, which plays a role in increasing the load carrying capacity using the physical wedge effect, and the other is a flat plane. This study mainly consists of three parts. First, the static characteristics were obtained over the region of the thin air film using the finite-difference method (FDM) and the bump foil characteristics using the finite-element method (FEM). Second, the analysis of the dynamic characteristics was conducted by perturbation method. For more exact calculation, the rarefaction gas coefficients perturbed about the pressure and film thickness were taken into consideration. At last, the static and dynamic characteristics of the tilting condition of the thrust pad were obtained. Furthermore, the load carrying capacity and torque were calculated for both tilting and nontilting conditions. From this study, several results were presented: (1) the stiffness and damping of the bump foil under the condition of the various bump parameters, (2) the load carrying capacity and bearing torque at the tilting state, (3) the bearing performance for various bearing parameters, and (4) the effects considering the rarefaction gas coefficients.     

Design of annular recess hydrostatic thrust bearing under dynamic loading

Design charts are presented of a dynamically loaded thrust bearing with as annular recess. The effect of non-parallelism between the bearing and the runner surfaces is also considered, since this is a common problem in hydrostatic thrust bearings. Based on pre-assigned dynamic excitations the pressure equation is solved numerically by finite difference methods to render the bearing performance characteristics namely: load capacity; bearing stiffness; damping coefficient; and lubricant flow rate. Results concluded that the bearing performance chareacteristics are dependent on the bearing radii ratios, the squeeze number, the bearing number and the tilt parameter.     

推力关节轴承加工工艺探讨

通过对推力关节轴承的结构优化和加工工艺改进,对提高推力关节轴承的可靠性,改善载重汽车使用性能,具有促进作用。     

Assessment of polymer composites for hydrodynamic journal‐bearing applications

Polymer composites are used as facing materials in hydrodynamic bearings for their low friction and ‘compliant’ properties, which play an important role during machinery operation. In journal bearings, this low friction property can be of significant importance during start and stop cycles when insufficient oil is available to fully separate the surfaces in relative motion. Current work is aimed at determining a suitable material for use in hydrodynamic journal bearings for applications in hydroelectric power plants. This study investigates friction and wear encountered during the transition from the stationary state to operational speed (acceleration) during initial start‐up. This is examined for virgin poly‐tetra‐fluoro‐ethylene (PTFE) together with a series of commercially available PTFE‐based composites and a babbitt material in boundary/mixed lubrication conditions. Tests are performed using standard laboratory block‐on‐ring test apparatus with a VG32 mineral oil. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A pressure output feedback control of turbo compressor surge with a thrust magnetic bearing actuator

This paper presents a pressure output feedback control of turbo compressor surge using tip clearance actuation with a thrust magnetic bearing actuator. First, static and dynamic compressor models were obtained for a commercial turbocharger, and the surge point was found through local stability analysis. Then, the effect of tip clearance on the compressor pressure rise was derived, and Lyapunov analysis was used to establish a limit of stability with tip clearance modulation. After that, a linear quadratic (LQ) state feedback control was designed considering the limit established by the Lyapunov analysis. In addition, an extended Kalman filter (EKF) was designed to estimate the mass flow rate from the measured compressor pressure. Finally, the pressure output feedback controller was built by combining the LQ state feedback control and EKF. Control simulation proved the effectiveness of the output feedback controller. This paper was recommended for publication in revised form by Associate Editor Dong Hwan Kim Dr. Ahn earned Ph.D. from Seoul National University in 2001. He was a research associate of University of Virginia. He is currently an assistant professor of department of mechanical engineering at Soongsil University and serving as an editor of international journal of rotating machinery. His research interests are rotordynamics, control and mechatronics. Mr. Park is a junior research engineer in Doosan infracore. He received his master from Seoul National University. His research area is on dynamics and control of rotating machinery. Dr. Sanadgol is an assistant Professor of Physics and Engineering at Sweet Briar College. She earned her PhD in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering with a focus in controls from the University of Virginia in 2006. Her research interests are in controlling flow instabilities in compressors and application of nonlinear control theories to mechatronics systems. Dr. Park received his PhD degree from the Seoul National University, Korea in 2007. He is currently director of research institute at KMB&SENSOR company. His research interests include the precision machine design, rotor dynamics, and magnetic actuators. Dr. Han received the Dipl.-Ing. and Dr.-Ing. in mechanical engineering from University of Karsruhe, Germany in 1975 and 1979, respectively. In 1982, he joined the school of mechanical and aerospace engineering, Seoul National University as an assistant professor. He is currently an honorary professor of mechanical engineering. His research interests are in machine element design, magnetic bearing, lubrication engineering and Bio-MEMS devices. Dr. Maslen is a Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at the University of Virginia. He earned his Bachelor of Science in 1980 from Cornell University and his doctorate from the University of Virginia in 1991. His research focuses on application of automatic controls to electromechanical systems with a concentration in magnetic bearings.     

推力球轴承保持架锁球模具结构改进

原来生产的推力球轴承的钢球数量为偶数且钢球直径较小。根据市场需要,开发设计了大量奇数钢球和钢球直径较大的轴承产品。为满足该类轴承的生产需要,对原铜保持架锁球模具结构进行了改进,保证了产品质量和生产效率。     

Comparison of an optimum‐profile hydrodynamic thrust bearing with a typical tilting‐pad thrust bearing

The oil gap profile in a hydrodynamic thrust bearing exerts a great influence on the bearing properties, and hence the optimisation of the oil gap profile is one method for improving the bearing properties. In the present work, the properties of two hydrodynamic thrust bearings have been experimentally compared under realistic load/ speed conditions. One was a typical tilting‐pad bearing and the other was an unconventional bearing with an elastic thrust plate. The latter was designed using oil gap profile optimisation and design parameter selection. Owing to the design method used, the oil gap profile was close to optimum for the assumed load/speed conditions. The results show a substantial increase in the minimum oil film thickness and lower temperature in the bearing with the elastic thrust plate. This improvement of properties is thought to be because of the optimised oil gap profile in the bearing.     

Performance analysis of a fully textured hybrid circular thrust pad bearing system operating with non-Newtonian lubricant

The present paper deals with the theoretical investigation of the influence of dimple geometry on fully textured hybrid thrust pad bearing and operating with non-Newtonian lubricant. The modified Reynolds equation which governs the flow of non-Newtonian lubricant in the clearance space has been solved using Finite Element Method. The simulated results indicate that the values of load carrying capacity, frictional power loss, maximum pressure and fluid film stiffness coefficient are significantly affected by the behavior of lubricant. The results presented in the study are expected to aid in determining the optimum value of dimple diameter and depth for the optimum bearing performance.     

Stability analysis of a disk-spindle system supported by coupled journal and thrust bearings considering five degrees of freedom

This paper investigates the stability of a disk-spindle system supported by coupled journal and thrust bearings considering the five degrees of freedom of a rotor-bearing system. The Reynolds equations and their perturbed equations of the coupled bearings were solved by FEM to calculate the stiffness and damping coefficients. The critical mass of the rotor-bearing system was determined by solving the linear equations of motion. As a result, the tilting motion was a major design consideration to determine the stability of the rotor-bearing system. Additionally, the stability without the tilting motion was overestimated, as compared to that with the tilting motion.     

Influence of micropolar lubricants on the performance of slot-entry hybrid journal bearing

A theoretical study concerning the slot-entry hybrid journal bearing lubricated with micropolar lubricants is presented. The modified Reynolds equation for micropolar lubricant is solved using finite element method along with equation of lubricant flow through slot-entry restrictors as a constraint together with appropriate boundary conditions. It has been observed that a slot-entry hybrid journal bearing operating with micropolar lubricant shows an increase in the value of minimum fluid film thickness and a reduction in the value of coefficient of friction as compared to a corresponding similar slot-entry hybrid journal bearing operating with Newtonian lubricant.