Professional Documents
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MAE 493N/593T
Dr. Konstantinos A. Sierros
West Virginia University
Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering
ESB Annex 263
kostas.sierros@mail.wvu.edu
Bearings
• Hydrostatic bearings
‐Introduction
‐Parallel pocket thrust bearings
‐Bearing designs
‐Velocity effects in hydrostatic thrust bearings
‐Hydrostatic journal bearings
‐Materials selection and design considerations
Hydrostatic bearings
The loaded surfaces of a hydrostatic bearing are separated by a fluid film which is
forced between them by an externally generated pressure
• Pump operates continuously for successful operation and maintenance of the
film
• Film formation does not depend on relative motion of surfaces (hydrostatic)
• Applications include machine elements
Hydrostatic bearings
Parallel surfaces: Pad and runner (They do not come in
direct contact)
Require external pressurization
Film is 5‐50 microns thick
To handle asymmetric loads, bearings employ several
evenly spaced pads
Hydrostatic bearings
• Bearing is supplied with fluid under pressure ps
• Before entering the recess, fluid passes through a restrictor/compensator and
pressure drops to pr
• Fluid passes out of the bearing through thickness h between bearing land and
opposing bearing surface (slider/bearing runner)
• Depth of pocket >> gap h
• Restrictor allows pocket pressure pr to be different than ps and this difference
depends on load W
• If W is very large, then h may fall to zero (no flow through bearing) and pr is
equal to ps
• If W is zero (no load), h becomes very large and the only resistance to flow is
offered by the restrictor
Hydrostatic bearings
• Pump draws fluid from a reservoir through a coarse filter or strainer
• Fluid passes through a bearing compensator via a line filter at pressure ps
• A second filter allows debris to be flushed out of the system
Hydrostatic bearings
• Hydrostatic bearings are used when;
‐Normal loads are high
‐Very precise positional control is required
• In a correctly designed hydrostatic bearing, surfaces never come into contact
• Therefore, there should be no wear and damage
• Accuracy can be maintained for the whole lifetime of the component
• Stiffness and thus vibration characteristics can be controlled
• Disadvantages include large size and cost
• Also, external pumps must run continuously (safety)
• Fluid is liquid (hydrocarbon oil) or gas (air)
• Aerostatic bearing are more expensive since higher accuracy and tolerances are
required
Parallel pocket thrust bearings
Relationship
Bearing performance
Load‐carrying capacity
parameters
of bearing
(stiffness, flow requirements)
Bearing dimensions
Physical properties of pressurized film
Pocket: The portion of a cage shaped to hold the ball or roller
Thrust bearing: A bearing designed primarily for thrust loads
Thrust load: Load exerted parallel to the axis of the shaft on which the
bearing is mounted
Thrust bearing
1.2c; a thrust bearing allows rotation of the shaft and sustains a load
parallel with the axis of rotation
1‐D pressure‐induced flow
• Consider fluid flow between two stationary parallel plates separated by a
viscous film of thickness h
• Plates are indefinitely long in the Oy direction
• Flow is parallel to Ox‐axis and is maintained by pressure p (left hand end)
Laminar flow
Laminar flow occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers, with no disruption
between the layers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nl75BGg9qdA&NR=1
1‐D pressure‐induced flow
• Gap h is small compared to length in Ox direction and fluid flow is laminar
• In small bearings the above requirement is easily satisfied
• In very large hydrostatic bearings significant effects of turbulence within the film
can be observed
1‐D pressure‐induced flow
• Volumetric flow rate q per unit width of the bearing (assuming fluid is
incompressible)
h
h 3 dp
q = ∫ udz = −
0
12n dx
velocity distribution viscosity
in Ox direction
1‐D pressure‐induced flow
• Fully developed pipe flow is described below;
Radius of circular passage
πb dp4
Q=−
8n dx
Total volume flow rate
Single circular pad bearing
Single circular pad bearing
• Outer radius ro and central recess radius ri
• At r (ri<r<ro) the total flow rate through the bearing is;
h 3 dp
Q=− × × 2πr
12n dr
Single circular pad bearing
• The fall in fluid pressure across the land is shown in the figure below
• The total load W carried by the bearing is given by;
[p ×π r ]
ro
ro dp
W = 2 − ∫ πr
2
dr
0
0
dr
Single circular pad bearing
W 1 − (ri / ro ) 2
=
πro p r
2
2 ln(ro / ri )
Single circular pad bearing
• Load‐carrying capacity and associated flow rate for a hydrostatic bearing can be
expressed in non‐dimensional terms, W* and Q*
Q * = Q ÷ ( h 3 p r / n)
• W* and Q* depend only on shape of bearing; for a single circular pad we have;
1 − ( r − r ) 2
1
W* = i o
Q =
*
2 ln(ro − ri ) 6n ln(ro / ri )
Single circular pad bearing
• The variations in the previous quantities with the ratio of the outer to inner land
radii ro/ri are shown below;
Bearing optimization
• Criteria of design optimization of hydrostatic bearings
‐Maximization of load carried for a given flow rate
‐Maximization of bearing stiffness for a given supply pressure
• Cost of running a bearing depends on the pumping power required to supply it
The power supplied to the bearing Hp is related to the supply pressure and the
flow rate;
H p = ps × Q
• An efficient design should minimize the power required per unit load supported
Hp/W;
Hp 2h W Q ⎫
⎧ * 3
= 2 ⎨ *2 ⎬
W nA ⎩W ⎭
Practical bearing designs
• Multi‐recess bearings
‐Multiple pocket configurations for improved resistance to tipping effects
• Opposed‐pad designs
Velocity effects in hydrostatic thrust bearings
• Squeeze film effects
General velocity motion of the bearing
Normal component
Parallel component
of motion
of motion
Normal velocities occur when the load on the bearing varies with time and
the subsequent effects are known as squeeze film phenomena
Velocity effects in hydrostatic thrust bearings
• Sliding effects
• Consider a component of relative sliding velocity between the surfaces of the
baring
Velocity effects in hydrostatic thrust bearings
• Sliding effects
• Maintenance of the motion of the lower slider requires the application of a
horizontal force F
nUA1 area of the land
F≈
h
Velocity effects in hydrostatic thrust bearings
• Sliding effects
• The frictional power absorbed by the bearing is given by;
nU 2 A1
H f = F ×U =
h
Hydrostatic journal bearings
• Hydrostatic support of circular shafts (journals) both stationary and rotating
• Differences from thrust bearings
‐Films thickness around bearing is not uniform
‐Shaft rotation often results in high relative sliding velocities that have significant
effects on pressure distribution
• Still high load carrying capacity
• Very low friction
Hydrostatic journal bearings
• Between four and eight pockets around the circumference of the bearing
• Each pocket is controlled by its own restrictor
• Therefore, each recess and the surrounding land act as an individual thrust pad
• When journal rotates, viscous drag leads to additional circumferential flow from
one recess to another which helps build up the supporting pressure under load
Hydrostatic journal bearings
• Defining a non‐dimensional load W*
W
W = *
p r LD
• Defining a non‐dimensional flow rate Q*
2π / 3
Q =*
L/D
Hydrostatic journal bearings
• Relationship of Q* and L/D
Material selection and other design considerations
• The choice of materials in hydrostatic bearings is not as critical as in other
tribological systems
• In normal operation there is no direct contact between the bearing surfaces
Material selection and other design considerations
• Movement with power disconnected
• Materials should be chosen to minimize damage in this case
• Not using ‘like’ on ‘like’ materials
• High pressures or temperatures
• Soft bearing materials may extrude or creep under the influence of high
temperatures and pressures
• Thermal expansion of bearing components can be an issue especially in hot gas
lubrication cases
• Corrosive lubricants
• Bearing surfaces should be chemically stable to the lubricant and/or its additives
and contaminants
• Collection and return of the leakage fluid
• Prevent and control the ingress of dirt and foreign solid contaminants
• Prevent loss of lubricant to outside world (environmental) using adequate
sealing
Summary
• Hydrostatic bearings
‐Introduction
‐Parallel pocket thrust bearings
‐Bearing designs
‐Velocity effects in hydrostatic thrust bearings
‐Hydrostatic journal bearings
‐Materials selection and design considerations