Phillips cooler with magnetic bearings and clearance seals
This Stirling Cycle cooler, built by North American Phillips, tested the
use of magnetic
bearings and clearance seals in mechanical coolers. The cooler
demonstrated the usefulness of these techniques by running
for a total of 5 years. This particular
model of Stirling Cycle cooler is not in commercial production,
however.
Definitions:
- Magnetic Bearings
- In magnetic bearings, moving parts are held in place by magnetic
forces, rather than by conventional bearings such as ball bearings or
roller bearings.
- Clearance Seal
- The clearance seals in the Phillips cooler prevent helium gas from
flowing past the cooler's moving pistons . Instead of using a rubber
gasket or a layer of oil, these seals rely on precise machining of
the pistons and the cylinders they pass through, so that the gap between
the piston and the wall is too small for any significant amount of
gas to flow through.
Phillips cooler with magnetic bearings and clearance seals.
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Curator:
Mark O. Kimball
NASA Official: Eric A. Silk
Last Updated: 09/11/2014
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