A wind turbine includes a rotor shaft. The rotor shaft is mounted via a bearing assembly having a first bearing ring and a second bearing ring mounted to rotate in relation to the first bearing ring. A hydrostatically supported first friction bearing segment is disposed on the first bearing ring and interacts with a first friction face that is disposed on the second bearing ring. The first friction bearing segment is received in a receptacle pocket of the first bearing ring such that a first compression chamber is formed between the first bearing ring and the first friction bearing segment. The first friction bearing segment is configured such that a second compression chamber is formed between the first friction bearing segment and the second bearing ring, wherein the first compression chamber and the second compression chamber are connected by a duct that runs through the first friction bearing segment.

A damper bearing includes: a bearing portion that supports a rotary shaft; and a tubular portion that is located around an outer circumference of the bearing portion, and has an outer surface attachable to a structural member. The bearing portion can be a hydrostatic bearing that supports the rotary shaft with a predetermined bearing clearance therebetween. The tubular portion includes a plurality of planar slits arranged circumferentially at predetermined intervals in the tubular portion. Each slit extends radially from an open end at the outer surface, and extends circumferentially in an arc to a predetermined point in a region between the outer and inner surfaces. The tubular portion includes a bearing fluid supply hole that is formed in a region where none of the planar slits is situated, and extends from the outer surface of the tubular portion to the bearing portion without passing through any of the planar slits.

A gas bearing for a compressor includes a bearing portion and a sealing portion mounted to a bearing housing of the compressor via one or more dampers, and the sealing portion being fixedly connected to the bearing portion, and a vent with an inlet in the bearing. The bearing portion has an inner radial surface for radially supporting a shaft of the compressor. The sealing portion has a sealing surface. The inlet of the vent disposed between the inner radial surface and the sealing surface. The sealing surface and a rotating surface form a path that extends along the sealing surface. The path extending from a pressurized volume of the compressor to the vent, and the pressurized volume containing a fluid.

The amount of consumption of gas is reduced when the gas is expanded to be cooled by using a plurality of expansion turbines. A high-pressure expansion turbine includes: a gas supply passage through which bearing gas is supplied to a bearing portion; and a gas discharge passage through which the bearing gas which has been supplied from the gas supply passage to the bearing portion is discharged from the bearing portion. A low-pressure expansion turbine includes: a gas supply passage through which the bearing gas is supplied to a bearing portion; and a gas discharge passage through which the bearing gas which has been supplied from the gas supply passage to the bearing portion is discharged from the bearing portion. The bearing gas discharged from the gas discharge passage of the high-pressure expansion turbine is supplied to the gas supply passage of the low-pressure expansion turbine.

A linear electromagnetic machine includes a stator, a translator, and a bearing system. The bearing system maintains alignment against lateral displacement of the translator relative to the stator, as the translator reciprocates axially. More particularly, the bearing system maintains a motor air gap between the stator and a magnetic section of the translator. The stator includes a plurality of stator teeth and windings, which form a plurality of phases. The stator teeth and windings are arranged using a hoop stack with spines to form a stator bore and define the motor air gap. The bearing system can include bearing housings that are configured to form a bearing interface with a surface of the translator. The bearing interface can include a contact bearing or a non-contact bearing, such as a gas bearing. Current is controlled in the phases to convert between electrical energy and kinetic energy of the translator.

A bearing assembly for a linear electromagnetic machine includes a sleeve having a surface configured to provide a bearing between the surface and a translator, a front plate coupled to the sleeve, a support block, and a plurality of flexures coupled to the support block. Each flexure is coupled between the support block and one of the front plate or a stator. For example, a load path extends from a stator to the support block via a first set of flexures of the plurality of flexures, from the support block to the front plate via a second set of flexures of the plurality of flexures, and from the front plate to the sleeve. In the example of four flexures, two flexures are affixed to the support block and front plate, while two other flexures are affixed to the support block and the stator.

An externally pressurized porous gas bearing for operating within a refrigerant environment is disclosed. The gas bearing utilizes shear heating from rotation of a rotor, thereby increasing the pressure and load capacity of the externally pressurized porous gas bearing. The gas bearing is capable of operating when the refrigerant is in a liquid phase and when the refrigerant is in a gaseous phase.

A fan blade assembly using air bearing features to reduce frictional losses, reduce physical wear and tear, and allow for faster acceleration of the fan blade within the assembly is disclosed. A fan blade housing incorporates inlets for pressurized air which create a pressurized area between the fan blade and the housing. The pressurized area functions as an air bearing interface and the fan blade is kept at a controlled distance from the fan blade housing as it spins. In an alternate embodiment, the fan blade assembly has pass-through inlets which use air pressure generated by the fan itself as it spins to provide the pressurized air for the pressurized area.

A porous gas bearing is disclosed. The porous gas bearing includes a housing having a fluid inlet and an aperture. A porous surface layer is disposed within the housing surrounding the aperture in a circumferential direction. The porous surface layer is in fluid communication with the fluid inlet. A damping system includes a damping system including a biasing member, the biasing member being disposed in a passageway that extends along the longitudinal direction of the aperture and circumferentially about the aperture, wherein the biasing member is arranged radially outward from the porous surface layer.

A fluid machine includes a rotating body, an operation body rotated integrally with the rotating body, a housing, hydrodynamic plain bearings rotatably supporting the rotating body relative to the housing, and a cooling passage arranged in the housing. The hydrodynamic plain bearings each include a resin coating layer at a portion that is opposed to the rotating body. The hydrodynamic plain bearings include at least one combination of hydrodynamic plain bearings. Each combination includes an upstream hydrodynamic plain bearing and a downstream hydrodynamic plain bearing located at different positions in a direction in which the fluid flows through the cooling passage. The coating layer of the upstream hydrodynamic plain bearing has a lower hardness than the coating layer of the downstream hydrodynamic plain bearing.