The Influence of Injection Pockets on the Performance of Tilting-Pad Thrust Bearings: Part I — Theory
Keyword(s):
This is Part I of a two-part series of papers describing the effects of high pressure injection pockets on the operating conditions of tilting-pad thrust bearings. A numerical model based on the Reynolds equation is developed extending the three dimensional thermo-elasto-hydrodynamic (TEHD) analysis of tilting-pad thrust bearings to include the effects of high pressure injection and recesses in the bearing pad. The model is applied to the analysis of an existing bearing of large dimensions and the influence of the pocket is analyzed. It is shown that a shallow pocket positively influences the performance of the bearing as it has characteristics similar to those of a parallel step bearing.