GAS TURBINE ENGINE (APP 102) Note 5 ILPC 09/2022

BEARING, AIR COOLING AND SEALING

BEARINGS
A bearing is any surface that supports or is supported by another surface. Bearings
are designed to produce a minimum of friction and a maximum of wear resistance.
Bearings must reduce the friction of moving parts and also take thrust loads or a
combination of thrust and radial loads. Those which are designed primarily for
thrust loads are called thrust bearings. The ball bearings are used to provide the
thrust bearing as they can take both thrust and radial loads, and roller bearings are
used to support the shaft whilst allowing axial movement. They are sometimes
called expansion bearings.
Ball Bearings
A ball bearing consists of an inner race, an outer race and one or more sets of balls,
and a ball retainer or cage. The purpose of the retainer or cage is to prevent the
balls touching one another. Ball bearings are used for radial and thrust loads; a ball
bearing specially designed for thrust loads would have very deep grooves in the
races or be of the angular bearing type, these must always be fitted the correct way
round.
Roller Bearings
These bearings are manufactured in various shapes and sizes and will withstand
greater radial loads than ball bearings because of greater contact area. They allow
axial movement of the shaft, this is very useful in a gas turbine due to expansion of
the engine due to the heat it produces.
Other types of Bearings
It is rare to find taper roller or needle bearings used in gas turbine engines,
however some APU’s use plain bearings to support the turbine end of the main
shaft.
Bearing Chamber (Sump)
One or more bearings are contained within a bearing chamber or sump. The
chamber is sealed to prevent oil escaping into the engine and to prevent excessive
air getting into the oil. The bearing chamber will have an oil feed which is sprayed
on to the bearing to lubricate and cool it.
SEALING
Bearing chambers are usually sealed using air. The internal cooling air within the
engine provides the air. Typical seals used are labyrinth, screw back and carbon
types. . All of these seals need a differential pressure between inside and outside
the bearing housing. Where pressure is available it is used, if the differential is too
low, it can be boosted by suction from a scavenge pump. Carbon seals require the
oil to be in contact with them to provide cooling for the seal.

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To prevent excess pressure building up within the bearing chamber, it is usually
vented. This vent on some engines is taken to the oil tank to ensure that the whole
system is working against the same pressure, or it goes to the oil pressure regulator
to ensure that there is a constant pressure drop across the spray jets in the bearing
housings.
AIR COOLING AND SEALING
Air cooling system is to ensure that certain engine part do not absorb heat from the
gas stream to an extend that is detrimental to their safe operation.
Air Seal:
Each seal is made up of labyrinth (number of fin rotating within stationary
member). Air seal is use to control the flow of air for effective operation of oil seal
and prevent leakage of hot gases from main gas stream
Oil Seal:
Consist of fixed and rotating member which prevents leakage between rotating and
non-rotating parts of bearing.
Type of Clearance seals consist of:
i. Labyrinth seal
ii. Hydraulic seal
iii. Ring seal
Labyrinth Seal
Labyrinth seals are constructed of metal non-rotating lands, which are secured to
various parts of the engine case and a series of cylindrical rotating knife-edge steps
that mate with the lands. With this type of seal, there are no contacting parts. A
precise clearance is designed into the seals to control the pressure, as the
compressor air passes over the cascade of knife-edges, the pressure is reduced. The
labyrinth seal may be used in conjunction with an abradable coating on the
stationary member.
Labyrinth seals are constructed of metal non-rotating lands. They are secured to
various parts of the engine case and a series of cylindrical rotating knife-edge steps
that mate with the lands.
Labyrinth are used as inter stage seal use to return oil in bearing chamber
- Comprises of a threaded rotating member with a static bore lined soft
abraidable material
- This allows air to flow into bearing chamber and prevent 0.1 from escaping.
Hydraulic Seal
This type of seal may also be found protecting the bearings on the main rotating
assembly of an engine. It is fitted between the rotating shafts on a twin or triple
spool engine. A hydraulic seal would be used in conjunction with another type of
seal. The seal consists of a circular baffle ring mounted on a rotating shaft; the rim

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of this ring sits in the centre of a circular depression in an outer rotating shaft. Oil
from the bearing will fill this depression and be held there by centrifugal force.
Ring Seal
Ring seal has a smaller running clearance than a Labyrinth Seal. Use for bearing
chamber sealing (not in hot section). It can be used in conjunction with hydraulic
seal. This type of seal would normally be used around a main bearing assembly
within the engine. It may be used in conjunction with a labyrinth. The ring seal is
similar to a large stepped type of piston ring;
It is located on a rotating shaft. When the shaft is stationary, the seal clamps tightly
to the shaft. As the shaft rotates, the spring ring can expand slightly, under
centrifugal force, when it then forms an effective seal with the adjacent stationary
housing.
Type of Contact seals consist of:
i. Carbon
ii. Brush
Carbon Seal
Another method of air sealing is achieved by using a carbon seal arrangement.
They are used on the rotating assembly of a gas turbine and protection of engine
drive components in accessory gearboxes. The carbon seal is fixed and held against
the rotating seal by springs. This is made up of ring carbon spring loaded against
machined collar. Matched and placed together and air leakage across the seal is
much less than labyrinth seal.
Brush Seal
Use to control air pressure in two different areas. Use as an air pressure control
seal for bearing and performance not affected by vibration.