Pump system employing liquid filled rotor
First Claim
1. A long life motor driven pump system for pressurizing and supplying a thermal transfer liquid that may vary widely in temperature and viscosity, while employing the same liquid internally in the motor for lubrication of bearings, comprising:
- a regenerative turbine type pump having a housing, an input and output, the pump including an interior chamber in communication with the input and output;
a motor of the fluid-filled rotor type having a rotor enclosure, a rotor within the enclosure and a motor shaft along a central axis, with first and second shaft ends extending in opposite directions from the rotor, with the first shaft end extending onto the interior chamber of the pump, a stator about the rotor enclosure, the rotor enclosure including end members concentrically disposed about the respective ends of the shaft and providing journal surfaces for supporting hydrodynamic bearing surfaces along the first and second ends of the shaft and the motor further including a motor enclosure about the stator, the structure coupling the pump housing to the motor housing including a low thermal conductivity path therebetween and the end member of the rotor enclosure being disposed about the second end of the shaft including an aperture accessing the interior of the rotor enclosure;
an end cap member coupled to the motor housing about the second end of the shaft;
at least one impeller mounted on the first end of the shaft in the interior chamber of the pump; and
valve means mounted in the aperture of the end member at the second end of the shaft for enabling filling the rotor enclosure with thermal transfer liquid.
6 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A long life rotor pump combination of the type having a liquid filled rotor that uses the liquid being pumped to establish hydrodynamic bearings within the rotor incorporates a pump which can be expanded to include more than one impeller, providing an optionally higher flow rate. Thermal isolation between the motor housing and the pump housing is assured by restricting heat conductivity through the physical structures and through the liquid. The rotor enclosure is formed with a number of engaging but not joined elements maintained under compression established by forces exerted in securing the encompassing motor housing.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1. A long life motor driven pump system for pressurizing and supplying a thermal transfer liquid that may vary widely in temperature and viscosity, while employing the same liquid internally in the motor for lubrication of bearings, comprising:
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a regenerative turbine type pump having a housing, an input and output, the pump including an interior chamber in communication with the input and output;
a motor of the fluid-filled rotor type having a rotor enclosure, a rotor within the enclosure and a motor shaft along a central axis, with first and second shaft ends extending in opposite directions from the rotor, with the first shaft end extending onto the interior chamber of the pump, a stator about the rotor enclosure, the rotor enclosure including end members concentrically disposed about the respective ends of the shaft and providing journal surfaces for supporting hydrodynamic bearing surfaces along the first and second ends of the shaft and the motor further including a motor enclosure about the stator, the structure coupling the pump housing to the motor housing including a low thermal conductivity path therebetween and the end member of the rotor enclosure being disposed about the second end of the shaft including an aperture accessing the interior of the rotor enclosure;
an end cap member coupled to the motor housing about the second end of the shaft;
at least one impeller mounted on the first end of the shaft in the interior chamber of the pump; and
valve means mounted in the aperture of the end member at the second end of the shaft for enabling filling the rotor enclosure with thermal transfer liquid. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13)
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10. An electric motor/regenerative turbine pump combination comprising:
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a motor system having an enclosed rotor and an exterior stator, and a pump end, the motor system including a rotor shell between the rotor and stator that is open at one end, and a shaft extending axially in both directions away from the rotor;
an outer housing about the stator;
an end cap detachably coupled to the outer housing at the side opposite the pump end and including a central bore aligned with the central shaft;
an inner end member spanning and engaging the open end of the rotor shell on the rotor side of the end cap, the inner end member having a central bore about the shaft, the end member being separate from the rotor shell;
an end closure member disposed within the bore of the end member and separate therefrom;
a spring disposed about the central bore the inner end member between the end cap and the inner end member to exert an axial bias on the end member against the rotor shell to maintain a sealed relation therebetween; and
a pump having a housing coupled to the pump end of the outer housing and sealingly engaged to the rotor shell, the interior of the pump being in communication with the interior of the rotor shell. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12)
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14. A motor drive and pump combination for pumping a heat transfer fluid that is subject to temperature variations that also cause substantial variations in viscosity, the combination having long life and high reliability despite employing the heat transfer fluid as a lubricant within the motor, comprising:
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a drive rotor disposed about a longitudinal axis and having drive shaft extensions along the axis from each end thereof, a first shaft extension having a mount region for at least one pump impeller, the first shaft extension including interior passageways from the end thereof to at lease one outlet opening adjacent the rotor, and a second shaft extension on the side of the rotor opposite the pump;
a rotor housing about the rotor and having an end sleeve with a central bore about the first shaft extension, and a thin cylindrical end wall encompassing the rotor connecting the end sleeve and defining a rotor interior volume with an end edge on the side opposite the pump;
a low heat conductivity thermal energy separation ring engaging the end sleeve of the rotor housing on the pump side;
an impeller-type pump disposed at the mount region of the first shaft extension and having at least one impeller coupled to and about the mount region of the shaft, the pump having a pump housing defining an interior chamber about the at least one impeller communicating with the rotor interior volume, the pump having also including an inlet and outlet for heat transfer fluid;
an end wall structure engaging the end edge of the rotor housing to further define the rotor interior volume, the end wall structure including a bore about the shaft;
hydrodynamic bearing support surfaces coupled to the rotor housing between the bore of the end wall structure and the shaft and the end sleeve bore about the shaft; and
a motor structure including a stator and housing disposed about the exterior of the rotor housing. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18)
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19. A closed rotor system for a motor pump combination, comprising:
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a rotor disposed about a central axis;
a shaft extending from the rotor in both directions along the central axis;
a regenerative turbine pump disposed about a first end of the rotor shaft extending from the rotor, the pump including a housing with an interior chamber, impeller means in the interior chamber and coupled to the first end of the shaft, an input port leading into the interior chamber, and an output port leading from the interior chamber outside the pump housing;
a rotor shell disposed about the rotor and including an open end wall about the second end of the shaft, a sleeve about the first end of the shaft, and a thin nonmagnetic rotor wall intercoupling the end wall and the sleeve;
a stator disposed about the rotor shell;
an outer housing about the stator;
a housing end cap disposed about the second end of the shaft and securably closing the outer housing at the second end, the end cap spaced apart from the end wall of the shell, the end cap having an interior bore about the central axis;
an end member about the second end of the shaft on the rotor side of the housing end cap, engaging the end wall of the shell, and including an opening receiving the shaft and a surface transverse to the axis of the shaft and opposing the end cap;
a fill valve mounted in the opening in the end member for providing fluid into the interior of the rotor shell; and
a spring concentric with the central axis disposed between the housing end cap and the end member to exert axial bias on the end member against the open end wall of the shell in the direction toward the pump when the end cap is secured to the outer housing whereby sealing is maintained despite tolerance variations. - View Dependent Claims (20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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28. A pump for impelling liquid under pressure from a rotating shaft about a shaft axis, comprising:
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a pump body having an end face including a concavity therein defining an impeller chamber, open at the end face side, the end face including a planar apron surface about the concavity, and the pump body including a liquid input and output depressions in the body open to the periphery of the concavity at separated regions;
at least one impeller disposed in the impeller chamber concentric with the shaft axis and in a plane perpendicular to the shaft axis;
a pump end body having a substantially planar surface engaging the planar apron surface of the pump body and substantially coextensive therewith, the end body including a groove adjacent to and in communication with the impeller chamber periphery, and liquid input and output depressions in separate communication with the impeller chamber and the input and output depressions in the pump body;
an input port coupled to the pump body and in communication with the input depressions;
an output port coupled to the pump end body and in communication with the output depressions; and
a uniform thickness insert between the pump body and the pump end body, the insert including apertures therethrough coextensive with the concavities and the input and output peripheries respectively, whereby the overall pump housing is extendible to accommodate an optional additional impeller. - View Dependent Claims (29)
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Specification