Session: Student Poster Competition

Submission Number: 187093

Experimental Measurement and Prediction of Cryogenic Hydrostatic Thrust Bearing Performance Under High-Speed Rotation 

Modern liquid rocket engine turbopumps increasingly implement fluid film bearings to achieve higher reliability compared to traditional rolling element bearings. These bearings offer significant advantages, including virtually unlimited operational life and enhanced damping characteristics for the rotor-bearing system. In these applications, hydrostatic thrust bearings are essential for balancing the large axial loads that result from shaft speed variations and pressure differentials across the impellers, while simultaneously maintaining the precise axial position of the rotor. As turbopump operation moves toward higher rotational speeds, understanding the axial load behavior of these bearings under cryogenic conditions becomes critical for system reliability. While static load performance is well-documented in existing literature, experimental data for rotating conditions across various working fluids remain limited due to significant testing complexities. This work presents performance measurements for two hydrostatic thrust bearing configurations featuring distinct recess depths and orifice diameters. Rotating experiments are conducted using air and liquid nitrogen to investigate the influence of working fluid properties, supply pressure, and rotational speed on key bearing performance parameters, including flow rate, load capacity, and stiffness. The experimental results reveal notable differences in bearing performance depending on the working fluid used. Furthermore, the measurements show that recess depth significantly impacts bearing behavior during high-speed rotation. The test data agree well with numerical predictions. This work expands the available experimental database and supports the practical design and modeling of cryogenic hydrostatic thrust bearings for rocket engine turbopump applications.

Presenting Author: Qian Lou Hanyang University

Presenting Author Biography: Graduate Research Assistant at Hanyang University

Authors:

Qian Lou Hanyang University
Homin Lim Hanyang University
Hyunsung Jung Hanyang University
Kyuman Kim Hanyang University
Keun Ryu Hanyang University