Comparative studies on journal bearings for turboexpanders of a dual mode LOX-LIN plant at BARC, Mumbai Jain Ankit1,*, Jadhav Mohananand1, Chakravarty Anindya1,2, Goyal Mukesh1, Kumar Naveen1, Sugadan V.1 1Cryo Technology Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Trombay, Mumbai, India400 085 2Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai, India400 094 *E-mail ID: ankitj@barc.gov.in
Online published on 4 December, 2023. Medium and large capacity Liquid Oxygen (LOX) and Liquid Nitrogen (LIN) plants are available in the international market. However, there exist a market space for a dual mode air separation plant (either LOX or LIN).A turboexpander based dual mode cryogenic air separation plant is conceptualized by CrTD, BARC, Mumbai. The process employs a commondistillation column for both LOX and LIN modes. The design speed of the process turboexpander ranges from 1,00,000 to 1,30,000 rpm for various modes of operation. Specialized gas bearings are required for the turboexpander. This article describes a comparative study on various kinds of gas journal bearings for the turboexpander. The aim is to find a suitable bearing which can provide adequate stiffness to the turboexpander rotor for all operating scenarios. The variation of stiffness characteristics (direct as well as cross-coupled component) with shaft eccentricity direction and shaft speeds are compared for different bearings. Top Keywords Dual-mode air separation plant, High speed turboexpander, Journal bearing, Gas bearing. Top |