Unbalance-induced whirl of a rotor supported by oil-film bearings

Abstract

This paper presents a nonlinear stability analysis of an unbalanced rotor-bearing system using the numerical continuation method and the numerical integration method. In this study, the effect of unbalance on journal motion is highlighted and a relationship is established between the bifurcation diagram of a balanced rotor and that of an unbalanced rotor. The results show that the stable operating speed range, the shaft motion type, the whirl speed and the chaotic motion occurrence depend on the unbalance level, the bearing geometry, the oil viscosity, and the speed range of unstable limit cycles existence.

Keywords

• Nonlinear stability analysis
• Numerical continuation
• Unbalanced rotor
• Whirl speed
• Chaotic motion
• Hydrodynamic forces
• Unstable limit cycles