Hydrostatic Bearing Characteristics Investigation of a Spherical Piston Pair with an Annular Orifice Damper in Spherical Pump

摘要

The spherical pump is a totally new hydraulic concept, with spherical piston and hydrostatic bearing, in order to eliminate the direct contact between the piston and cylinder cover. In this paper, the governing Reynolds equation under spherical coordinates has been solved and the hydrostatic bearing characteristics are systematically investigated. The operating sensitivities of the proposed spherical hydrostatic bearing, with respect to the piston radius, film beginning angle, film ending angle, film thickness, and temperature, are studied. The load carrying capacity, pressure drop coefficient, stiffness variation of the lubricating films, leakage properties, and leakage flow rates are comprehensively discussed. The related findings provide a fundamental basis for designing the high-efficient spherical pump under multiple operating conditions. Besides, these related results and mechanisms can also be utilized to design and improve other kinds of annular orifice damper spherical hydraulic bearing systems.