Active lubrication applied to radial gas journal bearings. Part 1: Modeling

Active bearings represent a mechatronic answer to the growing industrial need to high performance turbomachinery. The present contribution aims at demonstrate the feasibility of applying active lubrication to gas journal bearings. The principle of operation is to generate active forces by regulating radial injection of lubricant through the means of piezoelectric actuators mounted on the back of the bearing sleeves. A feedback law is used to couple the dynamic of a simplified rotor-bearing system with the pneumatic and dynamic characteristics of a piezoelectric actuated valve system. Selected examples show the considerable performance advantages of such new kind of bearing.