Supersonic sample spinner

A high speed gas journal bearing comprising:

• a cylindrical bearing sleeve;
• a journal supported concentrically by pressurized gas inside said cylindrical bearing sleeve:
• said bearing sleeve larger than said journal by a radial clearance distance r.sub.c ;
• said radial clearance extending for an axial length that is greater than 35% and less than 70% of the diameter of said journal so as to form a cylindrical bearing clearance region:
• a plurality of oblique air-beating holes having beating hole exit ellipses for supplying pressurized gas into said radial clearance region through said bearing hole exit ellipses;
• drive means connected to said journal for causing said journal to rotate within said sleeve with a surface velocity opposite in direction to the net circumferential component of said gas entering said clearance region from said exit ellipse.

A high speed sample spinner, comprising:

• a cylindrical bearing stator;
• a first cylindrical sample container inside said cylindrical bearing stator and positioned so that said first sample container can be supported on a hydrostatic cylindrical gas bearing, said first sample container having two ends;
• said cylindrical bearing stator including a plurality of bearing orifices near said two ends of said first sample container;
• a radial-inflow microturbine coaxially and removably attached to said first sample container at one end thereof for spinning said first sample container within said bearing stator;
• said microturbine having an axially-disposed annular surface and a group of axially-extending, curved, rotor blades, equally spaced on said annular surface;
• each blade of said group having a radial entrance edge at a substantially constant entrance radius from the axis of said annular surface;
• each said blade having a radial exit edge at a substantially constant exit radius from the axis of said annular surface such that said exit radius is less than 90% of said entrance radius and greater than 40% of said entrance radius;
• each said blade having a free axial end such that each said free axial end sweeps out the same surface of revolution about the axis of symmetry of said annular surface as that swept by the free end of any other said blade;
• said blade group having maximum outside diameter less than 85% of the outside diameter of said first sample container;
• a drive stator in spaced relation to said microturbine and having an annular drive plenum;
• at least one drive nozzle directing pressurized gas with a substantially circumferential velocity into said annular drive plenum in said drive stator;
• said plenum located in the plane of and radially outside of the perimeter of said microturbine for communication with said microturbine;
• said drive stator including an axial flow shroud surface, substantially congruent with said surface of revolution, for inhibiting axial flow over said blades and defining radial gas flow passages between said blades;
• and
• a housing for distributing pressurized gas to said beating orifices and said turbine nozzle.

A high speed sample spinner microturbine, comprising:

• a cylindrical plug having a cylindrical flange;
• a ring having an axial surface, said ring extending concentrically from said cylindrical flange;
• a group of axially-extending, curved, rotor blades, equally spaced on said axial surface of said ring;
• each said blade having a radial entrance edge at a substantially constant entrance radius from the axis of said ring;
• each said blade having a radial exit edge at a substantially constant exit radius from the axis of said ring such that said exit radius is less than 90% of said entrance radius and greater than 40% of said entrance radius;
• each said blade having a free axial end such that each said free axial end sweeps out the same surface of revolution about the axis of symmetry of said ring as that swept by the free end of any other said blade;
• said blades forming a group of blades having maximum outside diameter less than the outside diameter of said flange;
• said blades having side surfaces substantially parallel to said axis;
• said blades having a mean flow entrance angle between 0.degree. and 75.degree. with respect to the radius and an exit angle between 20.degree. and 75.degree. with respect to the radius in the negative direction;
• said blades each having side surfaces defining radial gas flow passages that present continuously decreasing cross sectional flow area to a drive gas;
• said blades having axial length less than 1 mm at said entrance edge;
• and
• said entrance radius ranging between 1 and 15 mm.