Stability of a Rotor Partially Filled With a Viscous Incompressible Fluid

A hollow circular cylinder rotating with constant angular velocity and partially filled with a viscous incompressible fluid has been analyzed for stability. The analysis can be extended to apply to many different rotor geometries. The results of this analysis predict that over a range of operating speeds, the system is unstable. The extent of this unstable region is determined by the system parameters. The interplay between viscosity of the fluid and damping on the rotor is especially important in determining stability boundaries. A parametric study is presented for a rotor modeled as a cup in the middle of a symmetrically supported massless shaft. The rotor is subject to a linear spring and a linear damper. Rotor unbalance, gravity, and axial effects are considered negligible.