Development of a Fuel-Lubricated Bearing for UAV Engines

Small aerial unmanned vehicles (UAVs) are vital for a wide variety of military missions and have experienced increases in operational requirements that have outpaced their capabilities. The propulsion system is a key design constraint in any UAV, and current small gas turbines for these vehicles are limited by the conventional oil-lubricated rolling element bearings used to suspend their high-speed rotating assemblies. To address the limited life of rolling element bearings (REBs) and poor reliability of oil lubrication systems, Creare proposes an advanced hydrodynamic film bearing that will be lubricated by the engine fuel to provide reliable and maintenance-free operation. In Phase I, we will work with a small GTE manufacturer to define the ideal requirements for such a bearing, develop a design, fabricate a prototype, and test it in an existing test rig. In Phase II, we will further develop the novel bearing concept and retrofit it to an existing small gas turbine UAV propulsion system.