The Journal Bearing Analysis Suite: A New Analytical Tool Applied and Presented Available to Purchase

Planetary gear systems with hydrodynamic journal bearings can efficiently achieve high gear reduction ratios with minimum space and weight. For optimal designs, analytical tools are needed which provide accurate journal bearing modeling capabilities. At NASA Glenn a journal bearing is being prepared to support a compressor test. During check-out tests, a lubricant temperature problem came to light. As the unloaded bearing reached 6000 RPM, the lubricant exceeded the 93° C facility maximum. With a 30% increase in clearance, the bearings ran to 16,200 RPM; however, testing conditions entail 18,100 RPM with 9000 HP load. A parametric study was performed to determine the effects of clearance and loading upon lubricant temperature. A 1-D analysis was used, followed by the newly developed 3-D Journal Bearing Analysis Suite. The new software package incorporates the Army/NASA PGear Journal Bearing code. An overview of suite features and study results is presented.