Abstract
A miniature turboexpander capable of operating with the exhaust conditions down to sub critical temperatures and pressures has been developed. The expander shaft is supported in pressurized gas bearings and has a 4.76 mm turbine rotor at the cold end and a 12.7 mm brake compressor at the warm end. The expander has a design speed of 384,000 rpm and a design cooling capacity of 444 watts. A prototype machine has been built and tested in one of the satellite refrigerators at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. The gas bearings have demonstrated robust operation under severe system transients, including operation with the turbine exhaust in the two-phase flow regime. This paper describes the machine and the results of the testing.
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