Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide

Fluid film bearings lubricated with supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO<sub>2</sub>) eliminate the infrastructural requirement for oil lubricant supply and sealing in turbomachinery for sCO<sub>2</sub> power systems. However, sCO<sub>2</sub>’s thermohydrodynamic pro...

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Main Authors: Syed Muntazir Mehdi, Tae Ho Kim
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2022-01-01
Series:Applied Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/3/1320
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author Syed Muntazir Mehdi
Tae Ho Kim
author_facet Syed Muntazir Mehdi
Tae Ho Kim
author_sort Syed Muntazir Mehdi
collection DOAJ
description Fluid film bearings lubricated with supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO<sub>2</sub>) eliminate the infrastructural requirement for oil lubricant supply and sealing in turbomachinery for sCO<sub>2</sub> power systems. However, sCO<sub>2</sub>’s thermohydrodynamic properties, which depend on pressure and temperature, pose a challenge, particularly with computational model development for such bearings. This study develops a computational model for analyzing sCO<sub>2</sub>-lubricated tilting pad journal bearings (TPJBs) with external pressurization. Treating sCO<sub>2</sub> as a real gas, the Reynolds equation for compressible turbulent flows solves the pressure distribution using the finite element method, and the Newton−Raphson method determines the static equilibrium position by simultaneously calculating forces, moments, flow rates of externally pressurized sCO<sub>2</sub>, and pressure drop due to flow inertia. The finite difference method solves the energy equation for temperature distribution. The density and viscosity of sCO<sub>2</sub> are converged using the successive substitution method. The obtained predictions agree with the previous and authors’ computational fluid dynamics predictions, thus validating the developed model. Hybrid lubrication increases the minimum film thickness and stiffness up to 80% and 65%, respectively, and decreases the eccentricity ratio by up to 65% compared to those of pure hydrodynamic TPJB, indicating significant improvement in the load capacity. The bearing performance is further improved with increasing sCO<sub>2</sub> supply pressure.
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spelling doaj.art-6d5b9ef332a340d0a12c3e96981a0b9b2023-11-23T15:55:39ZengMDPI AGApplied Sciences2076-34172022-01-01123132010.3390/app12031320Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon DioxideSyed Muntazir Mehdi0Tae Ho Kim1Department of Mechanics and Design, Kookmin University, Seoul 02707, KoreaSchool of Mechanical Engineering, Kookmin University, Seoul 02707, KoreaFluid film bearings lubricated with supercritical carbon dioxide (sCO<sub>2</sub>) eliminate the infrastructural requirement for oil lubricant supply and sealing in turbomachinery for sCO<sub>2</sub> power systems. However, sCO<sub>2</sub>’s thermohydrodynamic properties, which depend on pressure and temperature, pose a challenge, particularly with computational model development for such bearings. This study develops a computational model for analyzing sCO<sub>2</sub>-lubricated tilting pad journal bearings (TPJBs) with external pressurization. Treating sCO<sub>2</sub> as a real gas, the Reynolds equation for compressible turbulent flows solves the pressure distribution using the finite element method, and the Newton−Raphson method determines the static equilibrium position by simultaneously calculating forces, moments, flow rates of externally pressurized sCO<sub>2</sub>, and pressure drop due to flow inertia. The finite difference method solves the energy equation for temperature distribution. The density and viscosity of sCO<sub>2</sub> are converged using the successive substitution method. The obtained predictions agree with the previous and authors’ computational fluid dynamics predictions, thus validating the developed model. Hybrid lubrication increases the minimum film thickness and stiffness up to 80% and 65%, respectively, and decreases the eccentricity ratio by up to 65% compared to those of pure hydrodynamic TPJB, indicating significant improvement in the load capacity. The bearing performance is further improved with increasing sCO<sub>2</sub> supply pressure.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/3/1320tilting-pad journal bearinghybrid lubricationsupercritical carbon dioxideload capacity
spellingShingle Syed Muntazir Mehdi
Tae Ho Kim
Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide
Applied Sciences
tilting-pad journal bearing
hybrid lubrication
supercritical carbon dioxide
load capacity
title Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide
title_full Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide
title_fullStr Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide
title_full_unstemmed Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide
title_short Computational Model Development for Hybrid Tilting Pad Journal Bearings Lubricated with Supercritical Carbon Dioxide
title_sort computational model development for hybrid tilting pad journal bearings lubricated with supercritical carbon dioxide
topic tilting-pad journal bearing
hybrid lubrication
supercritical carbon dioxide
load capacity
url https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/12/3/1320
work_keys_str_mv AT syedmuntazirmehdi computationalmodeldevelopmentforhybridtiltingpadjournalbearingslubricatedwithsupercriticalcarbondioxide
AT taehokim computationalmodeldevelopmentforhybridtiltingpadjournalbearingslubricatedwithsupercriticalcarbondioxide