Numerical Analysis of Flexible Rotor With Nonlinear Bearings and Squeeze Film Dampers

Abstract

This paper presents dynamic behaviors of a flexible rotor supported on nonlinear bearings and nonlinear squeeze film dampers. The nonlinear bearing and damper forces, which depend on instantaneous nodal displacements and velocities, are calculated at each time step through closed form solutions of Reynolds equation. Such combinations of fluid film bearings and squeeze film dampers are often used in industrial machines such as compressors and steam turbines to increase system damping. No previous works have studied the nonlinear time transient analysis of a fluid film bearing and damper combination. To describe the coupled motion of shaft, bearing and squeeze film damper, a method of assembling both the linear rotor and the nonlinear components is developed. The numerical transient analyses are applied to a 3-disk rotor supported with nonlinear short plain journal bearings and nonlinear short squeeze film dampers. Squeeze film dampers, introduced to the system, increase dynamic stability of the system under a wide range of system rotational speeds, and decrease the bearing forces under severe unbalance forces. Different nonlinear rotor dynamic behavior, such as sub-harmonic, super-harmonic and torus orbits are shown in transient analyses. This type of analysis can be employed to study whether a centering spring is required in the damper or not.