Have a Pump, Motor, Generator, Turbine, Compressor or Gearbox - There is a Bearing for That!

Waukesha Bearings is known internationally for its capabilities, technology, size and application experience in the rotating (turbo) equipment industry. Following is a brief selection guide intended to assist engineers, specifiers, integrators and others in choosing the right bearing—and bearing technology—for the application. (Ed.’s note: the predominant applications for the following products are: pumps; motors; compressors; turbines; generators; and gearboxes.) Tilting-padthrust bearings.Tiltingpad thrust bearings (Fig. 1) are available with a variety of design features, including directed lubrication, specially engineered pivot types and offsets, pad backing material and several different styles of thrust retainers—all designed to optimize performance and meet unique requirements in turbomachinery. Custom solutions are also available that offer reduced power losses, oil flow and pad temperatures,and address industry-wide issues such as axial vibration. Tilting-pad journal bearings. Tilting-pad journal bearings (Fig. 2) help ensure high performance and optimal compatibility with a variety of turbo-machinery. Available options include hydrostatic jacking, combined single- or double-acting thrust capability, spherical seats and electrical insulation. To achieve varying degrees of alignment capability, a number of pad pivot types and pad geometries are available.

Polymer-lined and solid-polymer bearings. Polymer-lined and solidpolymer bearings (Fig. 3) feature bearing-grade polymers used in combination with a variety of custom-engineered mating surfaces. Polymer-lined bearings are suitable for both oil and clean product lubrication. In applications where the bearing material must be chemically resistant to the clean fluid and able to support thin films, solid polymer bearings provide a high load capacity and inert solution. These specially engineered polymers are used on both journal and thrust bearings and provide exceptional temperature capabilities (beyond 250°C or 482°F), thin film operation, high fatigue strength, insulating properties and the ability to withstand continuous high load.