Side-channel pump with axial gas bearing
AssigneeEdwards Limited
InventorNigel Paul Schofield
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pump comprises a regenerative pumping mechanism. A rotor of the pump has a generally disc-shaped pump rotor mounted on an axial driveshaft for rotation relative to a stator, the pump rotor having rotor formations disposed in a surface and defining at least a portion of a flow path for pumping gas from an inlet to an outlet. The rotor formations are formed between the pump rotor and the stator of the pumping mechanism. The pump rotor and the stator comprise an axial gas bearing arrangement for controlling axial clearance between the rotor and the stator during pump operation. The gas bearing is located at a radially outward position on the rotor.
Claims14
A pump for pumping fluid, comprising a regenerative pumping mechanism comprising:
- a stator comprising a planar surface, a plurality of concentric channels formed in the planar surface and a planar circumferential gas bearing surface level with the planar surface;
- a generally disc-shaped pump rotor mounted on an axial shaft for rotation relative to the stator, the pump rotor having rotor formations comprising a plurality of concentric circles of shaped recesses disposed in a surface wherein each concentric circle of shaped recesses is aligned with a respective concentric channel of the stator and defining at least a portion of a flow path formed between the pump rotor and the stator for pumping gas from an inlet to an outlet of the pumping mechanism;
- and
- an axial gas bearing arranged to control axial clearance between the rotor and the stator during pump operation, the axial gas bearing located between the plurality of concentric circles of shaped recesses and an outlet of the pump that is at atmospheric pressure, the axial gas bearing comprising a rotor part and a stator part aligned with the rotor part, the rotor part comprising a plurality of bearing surfaces interspersed between a plurality of recessed portions on the rotor, and the stator part comprising a planar circumferential gas bearing surface of the stator.
A vacuum pump comprising:
- multiple concentric circles of recesses on a rotor, each circle of recesses aligned with a respective channel in a planar surface of a stator, wherein the circles of recesses and the channels increase a pressure of a gas between an inlet to the vacuum pump and an outlet of the vacuum pump;
- and
- a gas bearing located between the concentric circles of recesses and the outlet of the vacuum pump and comprising a planar circumferential gas bearing surface on the stator and a plurality of edges on the rotor that are each angled relative to a radius of the rotor and are each aligned with the planar circumferential gas bearing surface, wherein the gas bearing is at atmospheric pressure and the planar circumferential gas bearing surface on the stator is level with the planar surface of the stator.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.