Bearing housing with damping arrangement

A bearing housing for a bearing in a gas turbine engine, the bearing housing comprising:

• an inner shell configured to support the bearing;
• an outer shell disposed radially outwardly from and connected to the inner shell, the inner shell and the outer shell defining an annular space therebetween, the annular space having a radial dimension;
• and
• a snubber and a damper disposed in series with respect to each other in a radially direction in the annular space, the snubber having a stiffness greater than a stiffness of the damper, the damper configured to deform in use when the inner and outer shells move radially toward one another wherein a radial dimension of the snubber remains substantially constant while the damper deforms upon the inner and outer shells moving radially toward one another.

A method for absorbing radial vibrations transmitted by a bearing to a bearing housing having inner and outer cylindrical walls defining between them an annular space, the method comprising:

• receiving a radial vibration load from a shaft mounted to the bearing, the radial vibration load receiving at the inner cylindrical wall,
• allowing a radial movement of the inner cylindrical wall toward the outer cylindrical wall to reduce the annular space over an allowable range of radial movement of the bearing,
• deforming radially a damper in the annular space as a response to the radial movement of the inner cylindrical wall toward the outer cylindrical wall;
• and then
• preventing a radial movement in excess of the allowable range of radial movement by loading a snubber in the annular space having a stiffness greater than the damper to increase a radial stiffness of the bearing housing, a radial dimension of the snubber remaining substantially constant while the damper is deforming upon the inner and outer cylindrical walls moving radially toward one another to reduce the annular space.