Research on the Gas Pressure Fluctuation Characteristics inside an Aerostatic Thrust Bearing with a Pocketed Orifice-Type Restrictor

摘要

In this article, large eddy simulation (LES) is used to analyze the time variation flow field inside an aerostatic thrust bearing with a pocketed orifice-type restrictor. The results indicate that there is a complicated turbulent flow region inside the bearing and many vortices exist in the region. In the vortices, gas pressure increases gradually from the center to the edge. It is the rapid repetition of the formation and disappearance of the vortices that causes the gas pressure to fluctuate quickly and it is directly related to the micro self-vibration of the bearing. Furthermore, the influence of the bearing structure and film thickness on the pressure fluctuation is discussed. Compared to the experiments of other researches, it is concluded that LES predicts the gas pressure fluctuation characteristics inside an aerostatic bearing very well and it is useful for designing bearings with low vibration.