Combined Thrust & Journal Bearing Assembly Reduces Cost & Risk For Large Pump Users - Pumps & Systems

11/20/2016
CombinedThrust&JournalBearingAssemblyReducesCost&RiskforLargePumpUsers|Pumps&Systems
BEARINGS
Combined Thrust & Journal Bearing Assembly Reduces

Cost & Risk for Large Pump Users
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If power is interrupted, lubrication

continues without causing major problems
to pump bearings.
by Mark Kuhn
Prepackaged thrust and journal bearings can provide

significant advantages for large pump manufacturers and end
users.
Combined bearing assemblies are not new to the market;
they were introduced in the early 20th century. Certain types
and designs, however, are more effective for the pump
industry than others.
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Images1(left)&2(right).Image1showsanondriveendcombinedthrustandjournalbearing
assembly,whileImage2showsadriveendjournalbearing.(ImagescourtesyofKingsburyInc.)
A good example is a fluid-film bearing package that

integrates a self-contained, load-equalizing, double thrust
bearing that conforms to American Petroleum Institute (API)
Standard 610, along with a built-in oil circulator and selfaligning journal bearing (see Image 1), plus a separate journal
bearing mounted on the drive end of the pump (see Image 2).
http://www.pumpsandsystems.com/bearings/may2016combinedthrustjournalbearingassemblyreducescostrisklargepumpusers
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Image3.Nondriveendwithcoverremovedshowingcomponents
A unique aspect of this system is that lubrication is

autonomous, achieved by the oil circulator and collar, which
serve as a viscosity pump driven by shaft rotation. The
system eliminates the need for an external lubrication skid to
supply a pressurized flow of oil to the bearings. This system
also requires no emergency pump, accumulator, rundown
tank or other special arrangements for oil lubrication.
Additional motor control systems and electric power are also
not needed for oil circulation. Because a separate lube system
is not necessary, cost savings can be significant.
In contrast to a traditional system with an electrically driven
external lubrication skid, if power is interrupted, lubrication
continues without causing major problems to the pump
bearings. With its autonomous lubrication system, oil flow
continues until the pump bearings safely coast to shutdown.
Upon startup, oil flow is immediately initiated and continues
as long as the shaft is rotating.
CAHABA MEDIA GROUP. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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Prepackaged fluid film bearing assemblies are designed to

spare the pump manufacturer the challenges of designing an
appropriately sized system, sourcing the components,
machining the housing and assembling the individual parts.
Oil Circulator
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Because these bearings may run heavily loaded, the lube oil
must quickly be circulated through the system and cooled to
the proper temperature before returning to the bearing
cavity. Oil from the reservoir is drawn into a bronze ring
called the circulator, which is assembled around the collar.
The oil adheres to the collar and moves toward a dam inside
the oil circulator, passing through ports leading to spaces
between the lowest shoes on both sides. Shaft rotation carries
the lightly pressurized oil flow to the other shoes before it
escapes above the collar into a passage leading down to the
cooler and finally returns to the reservoir.
Besides the ports previously mentioned, another set is
arranged to allow the oil to circulate during reverse rotation
of the collar. When the direction of rotation changes, the
oil's adhesive qualities rotate the circulator until the lug at the
top of the circulator meets a stop. In either of the two stop
positions, oil enters the groove in the circulator by the
proper ports for the prevailing direction of rotation and is
discharged through other ports into the spaces between the
lower shoes.
The built-in journal bearing is self-aligning and able to take
full advantage of the oil film's load-carrying capacity. Testing
has shown that shorter journal shells run with unbroken
films under severe radial loads imposed by the pump runner.
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Image4.Driveendjournalbearing(withcoverremoved)islubricatedbyoilpipedbytheoil
circulatorofthenondriveendbearing.
Oil Cooler
Standard oil cooling is provided by a plate-style heat

exchanger mounted directly on the non-drive end unit and
requires freshwater typically provided at a temperature of 30
C (85 F). Standard coolers can meet any speed within the
product's published load and speed ranges. Shell-and-tube
heat exchangers can be used for applications with special
coolants such as seawater, as is the option of forced-air
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coolants such as seawater, as is the option of forced-air

cooling.
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To read other Efficiency Matters articles, go here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mark Kuhn is the business development manager at Kingsbury Inc., collaborating
with the company's outside sales representatives to promote growth in overseas
markets. He has been working in the company's Philadelphia-based corporate
headquarters since 1972 and has been involved in its international sales efforts since
1984.
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Combined Thrust & Journal Bearing Assembly Reduces Cost & Risk For Large Pump Users - Pumps & Systems

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11/20/2016

Combined Thrust & Journal Bearing Assembly Reduces

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If power is interrupted, lubrication

Prepackaged thrust and journal bearings can provide

A good example is a fluid-film bearing package that

A unique aspect of this system is that lubrication is

Prepackaged fluid film bearing assemblies are designed to

CAHABA MEDIA GROUP. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Standard oil cooling is provided by a plate-style heat

coolants such as seawater, as is the option of forced-air

To read other Efficiency Matters articles, go here.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Improve Pump Performance with Bearing Upgrades

CAHABA MEDIA GROUP. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

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