In many cases in rotating machinery, axial load is carried by tilting pad thrust bearings which have been developed since the beginning of 20th century. For high reliability and simplicity, most commonly the bearings are bath lubricated. In the times of sustainable development, however, minimization of friction losses becomes an important criterion for machinery assessment, and a strategic goal of their development. Performed calculations,...

Hydrodynamic thrust bearings, used to carry axial loads in heavily loaded shafts of water power plants hydro turbines, can reach outer diameters even exceeding 5 m. In such large objects scale effect could be observed. According to this, allowable bearing specific load assuring safe operation of the bearings has to be decreased, which increases thrust bearing dimensions. This effect is caused by excessive thermal deflections of...

In numerous machines, axial load is carried by tilting pad thrust bearings known since the beginning of 20th century. These bearings are commonly bath lubricated, which is simple, does not require any additional pumps, and, due to this, such systems are highly reliable. In a contemporary technology, however, minimization of friction losses became an important goal of machinery improvement. Calculations based on elementary rules...

Inlet temperature is one of the main inputs in all models for the analysis of fluid film bearing performance. At the same time, inlettemperature distribution and also oil velocity distribution at the inlet are the result of flow phenomena in the gap between the bearingpads. These phenomena are complex and in many cases further affected by any special arrangements of forced oil supply to the gapbetween pads. The reason for such...