Compliant foil-fluid bearing support arrangement

A foil-fluid bearing assembly adapted for rotatably supporting a shaft within a bearing housing, the foil-fluid bearing assembly comprising:

• a bearing sleeve having an outer surface and an inner surface defining an inner race, said inner race diametrically sized to receive a rotating shaft therewithin and maintain an annular clearance gap radially between said rotating shaft and said inner circumferential surface, the annular clearance gap axially extending along a substantial portion of a length of the bearing sleeve, the bearing sleeve adapted, in use, to supply a support fluid to substantially fill said annular clearance gap;
• a foil element circumferentially disposed between said inner race and said shaft;
• a compliant bearing support disposed between the outer surface of the bearing sleeve and the bearing housing;
• and
• the compliant bearing support having at least two independent compliant support elements, said at least two independent compliant support elements respectively having a first and a second modulus of elasticity, wherein the first modulus of elasticity is less than the second modulus of elasticity.

A foil-fluid bearing assembly comprising:

• a compliantly supported bearing sleeve, radially disposed between a rotating shaft and an outer housing, such that an annular clearance gap, adapted for receiving a support fluid therein, is provided between the rotating shaft and the bearing sleeve;
• a foil element being radially disposed within the annular clearance gap;
• the bearing sleeve being compliantly supported within the outer housing by at least two independent compliant supports, radially disposed between the bearing sleeve and the outer housing;
• and
• the two independent compliant supports respectively having a first and second modulus of elasticity, the first modulus of elasticity being less than the second modulus of elasticity.