The Utilization of a Damping Structure in the Development of Self-Adaptive Water-Lubricated Stern Bearings

A novel water-lubricated stern bearing damping structure with self-adaptive performance is proposed to meet the load-balancing and vibration-damping requirements of water-lubricated bearings. This innovative damping structure comprises an elastic element and a damping alloy layer. The elastic element facilitates the static and dynamic load sharing of the stern bearing, mitigates the edge effects, ensures even distribution of the contact pressure along the axial direction, and enhances the overall bearing performance. Consequently, it prolongs the service life of the bearing and minimizes friction-induced stimulation. The damping alloy layer effectively attenuates the transmission of shafting vibrations to the foundation through the bearing, optimizing the vibration transmission characteristics. Leveraging the finite element model, an in-depth analysis of the compensation capability of the turning angle and damping performance of the adaptive stern bearing was conducted. The findings reveal that when the thickness of the elastic element is increased from 10 mm to 40 mm, the maximum contact pressure can be reduced by 12.53%. When the length ratio of the elastic element is reduced from 0.7 to 0.4, the maximum contact pressure is reduced by 12.42%. Therefore, increasing the thickness and decreasing the length of the elastic element in the adaptive damping device enhance the load performance, improve the compensation capabilities, and reduce the bearing wear, thereby promoting greater bearing uniformity. Furthermore, the adaptive vibration-damping device optimizes the vibration transmission characteristics from the propeller stimulation to the bearing node. The computational results demonstrate a noteworthy reduction in the speed, acceleration, and displacement responses at the first-order natural frequency, decreasing by 58.82%, 58.90%, and 58.86%, respectively. This substantial reduction in the vibration response at the first-order natural frequency signifies the effective mitigation of vibrations in the system.