Radial continuous-flow machine with cooling and lubrication by way of a medium which flows through the machine

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12338833-B2
Application number	US-202318227684-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 28, 2023
Priority date	Jan 29, 2021
Publication date	Jun 24, 2025
Grant date	Jun 24, 2025

Abstract

A radial continuous-flow machine with cooling and lubrication by means of a medium flowing through the machine, wherein the medium flows from a high-pressure side to a low-pressure side of the radial continuous-flow machine, having a housing assembly and a rotor assembly that is rotatably mounted in an interior of the housing assembly, wherein at least one first bearing is provided for mounting the rotor assembly in the housing assembly, wherein the rotor assembly includes a rotor of an electric motor and an impeller, wherein the motor includes, in addition to the rotor, a stator that is a part of the housing assembly, wherein the rotor of the motor is arranged in a first region of the rotor assembly, and the stator is arranged in a first region of the housing assembly, wherein the first region of the housing assembly encloses the first region of the rotor assembly.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A radial continuous-flow machine with cooling and lubrication via a medium flowing through the machine, the medium flowing from a high-pressure side to a low-pressure side of the radial continuous-flow machine, the radial continuous-flow machine comprising:
a housing assembly; and
a rotor assembly that is rotatably mounted in an interior of the housing assembly, the rotor assembly including a rotor of an electric motor and an impeller;
at least one first bearing to mount the rotor assembly in the housing assembly, the at least one bearing including a first bearing; and
bypass orifices or bypass passages,
wherein the electric motor further includes a stator that is a part of the housing assembly,
wherein the rotor of the electric motor is arranged in a first region of the rotor assembly, and the stator is arranged in a first region of the housing assembly,
wherein the first region of the housing assembly encloses the first region of the rotor assembly,
wherein a distance that forms a first gap is provided between the first region of the housing assembly and the first region of the rotor assembly, where the first gap is connected on one side to the high-pressure side and on another side to the low-pressure side, so that a bypass flow of the medium flowing through the radial continuous-flow machine flows through the first gap during operation of the radial continuous-flow machine, and in so doing carries away heat from the rotor and/or the stator of the electric motor,
wherein a second gap is provided between a first bearing part of the rotor assembly and a first bearing part of the housing assembly,
wherein the first gap is connected on the low-pressure side or on the high-pressure side to the second gap so that a part of the medium flowing through the radial continuous-flow machine flows through the second gap during the operation of the radial continuous-flow machine, such that the part of the medium flowing through the radial continuous-flow machine provides for lubrication of the first bearing,
wherein the bypass orifices or the bypass passages are provided in a transition region from the first gap to the second gap, the bypass orifices or the bypass passages connecting the transition region to the low-pressure side of the radial continuous-flow machine, so that only a part of the medium flowing through the first gap is the part of the medium flowing through the second gap during the operation of the radial continuous-flow machine,
wherein the first bearing part of the housing assembly is composed of a first annular groove, and
wherein the first bearing part of the rotor assembly is composed of a first ring that projects into the first annular groove and is a part of the rotor assembly.

2. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 1 , wherein a length and a width or a diameter at a smallest cross section of each bypass orifice or each bypass passage is greater than the distance between the first region of the housing assembly and the first region of the rotor assembly in a region of the second gap.

3. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 2 , wherein a sum of each of the smallest cross sections of the bypass orifices or each of the smallest cross sections of the bypass passages is greater than a smallest cross section of the second gap.

4. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 1 , wherein a part of the first gap is formed between a radially outer boundary surface of the first annular groove and a radially outer surface of the first ring.

5. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 1 , wherein the second gap is formed between a radially inner boundary surface of the first annular groove and a radially inner surface of the first ring.

6. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 5 , wherein the radially inner boundary surface of the first annular groove is a radially outer surface of a ring that is a part of the housing assembly.

7. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 6 , wherein the bypass orifices or the bypass passages, in the transition region from the first gap to the second gap, are provided in the ring of the housing assembly.

8. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 7 , wherein the bypass orifices or the bypass passages are through-holes that extend radially in the ring of the housing assembly.

9. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 1 , wherein the transition region from the first gap to the second gap is formed between an axial boundary surface of the first annular groove and an axial surface of the first ring.

10. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 1 , wherein the radial continuous-flow machine is a driven radial-flow machine or a radial-flow pump.

11. The radial continuous-flow machine according to claim 1 , wherein the bypass orifices or the bypass passages are sized so that a part of the medium flowing through the bypass orifices or the bypass passages is greater than the part of the medium flowing through the second gap during the operation of the radial continuous-flow machine.

Assignees

• Hella Gmbh & Co Kgaa

Inventors

• Dick Georg
• Grothe Benjamin
• Hueser Theodor
• Niess Dominik
• Wille-Riess Thorsten

Classifications

• F04D13/0633

  Details of the bearings · CPC title

• F04D13/0646

  the hollow pump or motor shaft being the conduit for the working fluid · CPC title

• F04D13/0653

  the motor being flooded · CPC title

• F05D2260/98

  Lubrication · CPC title

• F05D2260/232

  characterized by the cooling medium · CPC title