A turbopump having an inducer and a two stage centrifugal pump has hydrogen entering an inducer and passing through a first stage impeller and a second stage stage impeller to the exit thereof. A turbine is located on the opposite side of said impellers from the inducer and has an integral shaft extending through the impellers and inducer on which they are mounted. A front radial bearing means is positioned between the inducer and first impeller and a thrust balancer means and rear radial bearing means are positioned between the second impeller and the turbine. An interstage seal extends between the two impellers. Hydrogen is taken from the hydrogen path to operate the axial thrust bearing and to cool the two radial bearings. Further, the hydrogen flow is taken from the inlet to the second stage impeller and directed through the shaft having a tortuous path therethrough to provide a desired cooling action. Dead air spaces are provided adjacent the turbine mounting to aid in the formation of a heat transfer barrier.
Side inlet means for a centrifugal pump has an inlet connected to the source of fluid to be pumped, and means forming a fluid flow passage extending through said side inlet means which defines, a diverging passage section, a shaped curved passage section, and a straight cylindrical passage section of varying length for delivering fluid to the suction eye of the impeller for the centrifugal pump having a velocity distribution which improves the efficiency thereof. Additionally, the side inlet means above described wherein the straight cylindrical passage section will have a predetermined length sufficient to permit operative association with inducer means for increasing the range of operation of the centrifugal pump.
A compact high power turbopump for feeding liquid propellant to a rocket engine comprises: a short, large diameter shaft that is capable of rotating; a single impeller providing a large pressure rise at a large flow rate, the impeller being mounted on the short shaft so as to constitute a single pump stage; a ball bearing for supporting the short shaft in a small section zone thereof situated in front of the impeller; a fluid bearing dimensioned so as to withstand a high speed of rotation N and having a large diameter D, the fluid bearing serving to support the short shaft in a large section zone situated behind the impeller; a turbine cantilevered out on the short shaft behind the fluid bearing; an inducer of the high pressure type disposed upstream from the ball bearing on the suction pipe; and metal casing elements for the pump and for the turbine that are of simplified shape.
A centrifugal pump has a casing with an impeller cavity in which a shrouded impeller is mounted and with front and rear labyrinth seals associated one with each of the front and rear shrouds of the impeller and located near the inner ends of the shrouds. An additional seal is positioned inwardly of the rear labyrinth seal to substantially seal a space behind the innermost part of the rear shroud and a pump structure is mounted on the impeller to the rear of the rear shroud for pumping fluid from the substantially sealed space to the entrance of a volute surrounding the impeller. The impeller shaft has a front thrust bearing coacting with a bearing surface, with fluid passing therebetween for lubrication and with the flow of the fluid being controlled to a minimal amount by a force imbalance on the impeller shaft created by location of the front and rear labyrinth seals at different distances from the axis of rotation of the impeller whereby pressure forces acting at the rear of the impeller urge the impeller shaft in a forward direction.
A multi-section inline axial flow pump is designed to pump a large volume of liquids containing solids in suspension. The pump consists essentially of a tandem-blade row, high-head axial inducer, a ten-stage low-pressure section and a ten-stage high-pressure section driven by one or more externally connected electric motors.
A gas turbine engine including a rotor shaft includes a bearing isolation system including an isolation shaft and a pair of pilots. The pilots are disposed between the isolation and rotor shafts and connect the isolation shaft to the rotor shaft to form a gap between the isolation and rotor shafts. The pilots are positioned axially along the rotor shaft and permit the isolation shaft to move axially with respect to the rotor shaft. Each pilot includes a plurality of openings to permit cooling air to flow within the gap defined between the isolation shaft and the rotor shaft.
