This work shows the experimental thermo elastic behavior of the stationary ring of a dry gas seal with logarithmic spiral grooves of 15° (common commercial configuration) and 11° spiral (configuration evaluated to confirm analytical predictions developed on previous works), as well as the hydrodynamic pressure of the fluid film. The stationary ring temperature is obtained through an array of sensors embedded in the ring and the ring deformation, resulting from the thermal and mechanical load, is collected by two strain gages. The hydrodynamic pressure produced in the fluid film is measured using dynamic pressure sensors. Two novel instrumentation methods are defined to collect the ring deformation and the dynamic pressure of the seal. The results show that the seal with spiral grooves of 11° at low speed presents a temperature increment induced by the contact between the rings; this contact may induce the premature fault of the rings, so that the 11° spiral seal needs more speed than the spiral of 15° to enter a hydrodynamic lubrication regime. The experiments show that the stationary ring distortion is induced by the temperature gradient and by the hydrostatic and hydrodynamic pressure; however, the thermal distortion of the ring is dominant for the current experimental conditions. The ring’s axial distortion also affects the seal static and dynamic performance due to the modification of the hydrodynamic regime.
Rotor vibration attenuation and structural components isolation in jet engines are achieved with squeeze film dampers, many of them supported on long elastic squirrel cages. Integral squeeze film dampers (ISFDs) are comprised of arcuate pads and wire-EDM webs rendering a compact viscoelastic support. An experimental study is conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of ISFDs in attenuating the imbalance response of a massive test rotor. Measurements of the damper structural stiffness and rotor natural frequencies are detailed. Impact tests on the test rotor supported on its dampers reveal the supporting structure to be very flexible, thus requiring the experimental evaluation of an equivalent stiffness for the damper and supports system. System damping coefficients extracted from impact load excitations vary with the lubricant viscosity and include a significant structural damping from the bearing supports. Rotor coast-down tests demonstrate the ISFDs to damp well the rotor response with peak vibration amplitude proportional (linear) to the imbalance. Viscous damping coefficients estimated from the amplitude response at the critical speeds agree reasonably well with predictions from a full-film, finite element model.
Lightly damped rotor bearing systems experience large amplitudes of vibration when traversing critical speeds. Bearing linearized force coefficients, strictly valid for minute motions about an equilibrium position, may not be reliable for design or troubleshooting in rotordynamics predictive analyses. Experiments assessing the dynamic forced response of a plain journal bearing undergoing large orbital motions due to singlefrequency excitation forces were conducted in a test rig. The short test bearing of slenderness ratio L/D = 0.25 has a nominal radial clearance of 0.127 mm (5 mils). Tests were conducted at three rotor speeds (900, 1800, and 2700 rpm), three feed pressures (1, 3, and 6 psig), and three excitation frequencies (15, 30, and 45 Hz). Baseline bearing motions due to shaft runout are recorded and subtracted in the parameter identification procedure. The forces exerted on the bearing induce large orbital motions with peak amplitudes exceeding 50% of the nominal bearing clearance. Identified cross-coupled stiffness and direct damping coefficients fall within value bands predicted by the π and 2π models of the fluid film, even for the largest amplitudes of motion. The bearing whirl frequency ratio approaches the typical 50% value at the highest speed tested. Excitation frequency has a marked influence of the test direct dynamic stiffness coefficients with added mass coefficients at least twice as large as predicted values.
Gas bearings are an attractive means of load support for rotating machinery due to their low mechanical power losses and dispensing of expensive lubrication systems. A subset of gas bearing technology, porous type gas bearings utilize a porous material as a means of feeding externally pressurized gas (typically air) to the bearing clearance region. When compared to typical orifice type hydrostatic bearings, porous bearings distribute pressurized gas more uniformly into the film clearance, thus resulting in a higher load capacity for similar flow rates [1]. The majority of the literature on porous type gas bearings focuses on the numerical evaluation of cylindrical bushings, yet experimental data on their performance is scant. As a follow up to Ref. [2], the paper presents an analysis of measurements of flow, drag torque and rotordynamic response of a large (100 mm OD, ∼275 N) rotor supported on two tilting pad (five-pad) porous journal bearings (specific load∼19 kPa). Measurements of air mass flow into the bearings, with and without the rotor in place, show that the film clearance offers little restriction. The mass flow rate is proportional to the supply pressure and lead to an estimated permeability coefficient. In operation with various levels of supply pressure and with the rotor spinning to 8 krpm (133 Hz, surface speed ∼42 m/s), several rotordynamic response tests (masses up to 6.9 gram) show the rotor amplitude of synchronous response is proportional to the mass imbalance; hence demonstrating the system is linear. Finally, rotor speed coast down tests from 8 krpm show that the bearings offer little drag friction; and increasing the supply pressure gives to lesser drag. The measurements verify the pair of gas bearings support effectively the rigid rotor with little expense in mass flow rate delivered to them. Most importantly, while operating at 10 krpm with a large added imbalance, the system survived a seizure event with little damage to the rotor and bearings, both restored to a near pristine condition after a simple cleaning procedure.
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