Simultaneous monitoring of oil film thickness and temperature in fluid film bearings

This paper reports on the application of an eddy current sensor with an active compensation for changes in sensor temperature to simultaneous monitoring oil film thickness and temperature in a tilting pad thrust bearing. Sensor design, calibration procedure, sensitivity and accuracy are described. Test equipment along with sensor mounting is also presented. Tests were run at different rotational speeds and bearing loads as well as different supplied oil flow rates to evaluate sensor performance in various operating conditions. During the tests film thickness and temperature were simultaneously measured. Temperatures were compared with data from thermocouples installed in the pads and thermistors mounted in the collar. Tests have shown that the sensor can successfully be used to reliably monitor the conditions within the bearing.