General Electric Company

The Texas A&M University System

Adolfo Delgado

Bugra Han Ertas

Christopher Edward Wolfe

Deepak Trivedi

Gerald L Morrison

Nathan EvanMcCurdy Gibson

Abhay R Patil

A turbomachine includes a housing having an inlet and an outlet. A shaft is rotationally disposed in the housing. The shaft is rotatable about a longitudinal axis. An impeller is coupled to the shaft between the inlet and the outlet and rotates with the shaft. The impeller includes a single impeller inlet and an impeller outlet, a first set of vanes disposed on a first side of the impeller, and a second set of vanes disposed on a second side of the impeller. A passage is formed through a thickness of the impeller. The passage facilitates transmission of fluid from the first side of the impeller to the second side of the impeller such that fluid is supplied to the first set of vanes and the second set of vanes via the single impeller inlet. Transmission of fluid through the impeller reduces net axial thrust imparted to at least one of the impeller and the shaft.

High energy density turbomachines

A thrust bearing assembly for a machine includes a stator housing, a fluid film thrust bearing, and a ring bearing. The stator housing surrounds at least a segment of a rotor shaft and one or more runners on the rotor shaft that include a first runner surface and a second runner surface facing in opposite axial directions along the rotor shaft. The fluid film thrust bearing is axially held between a first stator surface of the stator housing and the first runner surface. The fluid film thrust bearing is configured to generate a fluid cushion that blocks the first runner surface from engaging the fluid film thrust bearing. The ring bearing is axially held between a second stator surface of the stator housing and the second runner surface. The ring bearing has an annular contact surface that engages the second runner surface to axially support the rotor shaft.

Machine thrust bearing assembly

Growing community of inventors

College Station, TX, United States of America

Adolfo Delgado