Maximum Continuous Speed Research Articles

Labyrinth Seal and Pocket Damper Seal High Pressure Rotordynamic Test Data

The current centrifugal compressor design for the oil & gas market is more and more challenging, and the presence of many competitors is pushing technology towards both a casing size reduction and a rotational speed increase. The first point is leading to an increase in the number of wheels per rotor (to do the same service), and the second point is forcing to cross two or even three rotor modes (hence a higher control of rotor damping is necessary). The two points together are leading to increase the rotor “flexibility ratio” (defined as the ratio between the maximum continuous speed and the first critical speed at infinite support stiffness according to API standard, and finally the rotordynamic stability is very much challenged. The centrifugal compressor's rotordynamic stability is strongly related to the internal seals' dynamic behavior, and for this reason, the authors' company decided several years ago to develop internally a high pressure seal test rig to measure internal seals stiffness and damping. The rig is now in operation, and in a previous paper the authors described its main capabilities, the applied identification procedures, and the preliminary test results captured for a long labyrinth seal (smooth rotor, straight toothed stator) tested up to 200 bar. This paper is intended to show more data for the same long Laby with special focus on some peculiar test as negative preswirl test, single frequency versus multifrequency test, offset versus centered seal test. The negative preswirl test shows a drastic change in the effective damping (from destabilizing to stabilizing) and provides a support in favor of the selection of swirl reversal devices at seals upstream. The multifrequency excitation test approach (based on the concurrent presence of several frequencies not multiples at each other) is compared with a single frequency excitation providing similar results and thus confirming the soundness of the multiple effects linear superimposition assumption. The effect of a static offset (simulating the real position of a rotor inside an annular seal) is also investigated proving that the relevant impact is negligible within the range of eccentricity explored (10% of seal clearance). Moreover, a pocket damper seal (PDS) with the same nominal diameter, clearance, and effective length has been tested (up to 300 bar) and compared with the Laby. As expected, the PDS shows both a higher effective stiffness and damping at the same test conditions, so the promising results already collected in a previous test campaign which was performed on a smaller scale and lower pressure test rig were mostly confirmed with the only exception for the effective damping crossover frequency which was lower than expected.

3-로브 베어링으로 지지된 중형 고속 터보차저 로터의 선형 및 비선형 동적 안정성 특성 규명

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.

Feasibility of Applying Active Lubrication to Reduce Vibration in Industrial Compressors

In this paper the complete set of modified Reynolds’ equations for the active lubrication is presented. The solution of such a set of equations allows the determination of stiffness and damping coefficients of actively lubricated bearings. These coefficients are not just dependent on Sommerfeld number, as it would be the case of conventional hydrodynamic bearings, but they are also dependent on the excitation frequencies and gains of the control loop. Stiffness as well as damping coefficients can be strongly influenced by the choice of the control strategy, servo valve dynamics and geometry of the orifices distributed over the sliding surface. The dynamic coefficients of tilting-pad bearings with and without active lubrication and their influence on an industrial compressor of 391 Kg, which operates with a maximum speed of 10,200 rpm, are analyzed. In the original compressor design, the bearing housings are mounted on squeeze-film dampers in order to ensure reasonable stability margins during full load condition (high maximum continuous speed). Instead of having a combination of tilting-pad bearings and squeeze-film dampers, another design solution is proposed and theoretically investigated in the present paper, i.e., using actively lubricated bearings. By choosing a suitable set of control gains, it is possible not only to increase the stability of the rotor-bearing system, but also enlarge its operational frequency range.