For high-speed applications, gas lubricated bearings offer very specific advantages over other,more conventional bearing technologies: a clean and oil-free solution, virtually wear-free operation, lowfrictional losses, wide operating temperature range, etc. However, the principal drawback involved in theapplication of high-speed gas bearings concerns the dynamic stability problem. Successful applicationtherefore requires control of the rotor-bearing dynamics so as to avoid instabilities.After a detailed study of the dynamic stability problem and the formulation of a convenient stability criterium,a brief overview is given of the currently existing bearing types and configurations for improving the stability.In addition, three strategies are introduced: (i) optimal design of plain aerostatic bearings; (ii) modification ofthe bearing geometry to counteract the destabilising effects in the gas film; and (iii) introduction of dampingexternal to the gas film as to compensate for the destabilising effects.These strategies are worked out into detail leading to the formulation of a series of design rules. Theireffectiveness is validated experimentally at a miniature scale. In recent experiments a rotational speed of1.2 million rpm has been achieved with a 6 mm rotor on aerodynamic journal bearings, leading to a recordDN-number of 7.2 million.
