Uploaded April 2016 | Updated September 2026, 12 minutes ago
Animation of a Laval rotor running on plain journal bearings. The rotor traverses its critical speed around 22krpm, where the first bending mode is excited by the unbalance. At 40krpm, the rotor experiences fluid whirl, a form of self-excited oscillation caused by the interaction of the rotor with the fluid film bearings. At speeds over 40krpm, the whirl locks into the first bending mode, causing high amplitude oscillations: fluid whip. Credits: Rob Eling, Mathys te Wierik.
Animation of a Laval rotor running on plain journal bearings. The rotor traverses its critical speed around 22krpm, where the first bending mode is excited by the unbalance. At 40krpm, the rotor experiences fluid whirl, a form of self-excited oscillation caused by the interaction of the rotor with the fluid film bearings. At speeds over 40krpm, the whirl locks into the first bending mode, causing high amplitude oscillations: fluid whip. Credits: Rob Eling, Mathys te Wierik.
