• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.99-105
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• 2021

In this study, for a high-pressure turbine (HPT) of 800 MW class supercritical thermal-power plant, considering aerodynamic cross-coupling, we performed a rotordynamic logarithmic decrement (LogDec) stability analysis with various tilting pad journal bearing (TPJB) designs, which several steam turbine OEMs (original equipment manufacturers) currently apply in their supercritical and ultra-supercritical HPTs. We considered the following TPJB designs: 6-Pad load on pad (LOP)/load between pad (LBP), 5-Pad LOP/LBP, Hybrid 3-Pad LOP (lower 3-Pad tilting and upper 1-Pad fixed), and 5-Pad LBPs with the design variables of offset and preload. We used the API Level-I method for a LogDec stability analysis. Following results are summarized only in a standpoint of LogDec stability. The Hybrid 3-Pad LOP TPJBs most excellently outperform all the other TPJBs over nearly a full range of cross-coupled stiffness. In a high range of cross-coupled stiffness, both the 6-Pad LOP and 5-Pad LOP TPJBs may be recommended as a practical conservative bearing design approach for enhancing a rotordynamic stability of the HPT. As expected, in a high range of cross-coupled stiffness, the 6-Pad LBP TPJBs exhibit a better performance than the 5-Pad LBP TPJBs. However, contrary to one's expectation, notably, the 5-Pad LOP TPJBs exhibit a slightly better performance than the 6-Pad LOP TPJBs. Furthermore, we do not recommend any TPJB design efforts of either increasing a pad offset from 0.5 or a pad preload from 0 for the HPT in a standpoint of stability.

• Transactions of the Korean Society for Noise and Vibration Engineering
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.562-569
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• 2011

In this study linear and nonlinear dynamic stability characteristics of a medium-size high-speed turbocharger, whose rotor is supported by two 3-lobe journal bearings, are analyzed to evaluate and identify the effects of its bearing design variables. The rotor has the rated speed of 40,500 rpm and maximum continuous speed of 45,000 rpm. At first, utilizing the linear stability analysis method, bearing designs of yielding stable or unstable LogDecs as small as possible are searched by manipulating with machined bearing clearances and preloads. As next, utilizing the nonlinear analysis method, limit cycles of the rotor responses at the rated and maximum continuous speeds are simulated to check their acceptances. Results have shown that for the turbocharger rotor-bearing system considered, the 3-lobe journal bearing design with a smaller machined clearance and a larger preload are preferred for the stable rotor responses. More importantly, since there exists a good correlation between the linear and nonlinear stability analysis results, it is concluded that firstly the linear stability analysis method may be applied to screen quickly the ranges of bearing designs for stable or least unstable solutions and then, lastly the nonlinear stability analysis method may be deployed to check an absolute motion stability in terms of the limit cycle.

• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.9-14
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• 2014

In this Part II study, rotordynamic stability analyses were carried out to confirm improvements to the stability of a process high-speed lightweight centrifugal compressor, depending on the effects of tilting pad journal bearing designs. The bearing design variables considered were the clearances, LBPs, LOPs, and preloads. The results showed that the rotordynamic stability of the subject compressor rotor-bearing system improves exactly in accordance with the effects of the bearing design variables, which were determined in the preceding Part I study, owing to reduced bearing stiffnesses. Specifically, it was confirmed that the stability of the rotor system can be greatly improved by increasing both the machined and assembled bearing clearances, but there were no stability improvements by simply changing from an LBP to an LOP design. In addition, it was confirmed that for given fixed machined bearing clearances, the stability can be additionally improved by decreasing the preloads, i.e., by increasing the assembled clearances. In conclusion, it may be necessary to improve the designs of the original tilting pad bearings to obtain a sufficient margin of rotordynamic stability against a possible aerodynamic cross-coupled stiffness in a process high-speed centrifugal compressor. Thus, increasing the machined and assembled bearing clearances and decreasing the preload could be effective solutions.