Mixed Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication With Three-Dimensional Machined Roughness in Spiral Bevel and Hypoid Gears

2015 ◽  
Vol 137 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Pu ◽  
Jiaxu Wang ◽  
Rongsong Yang ◽  
Dong Zhu

Spiral bevel and hypoid gears are key components widely used for transmitting significant power in various types of vehicles and engineering machineries. In reality, these gear surfaces are quite rough with three-dimensional (3D) topography that may significantly influence the lubrication formation and breakdown as well as components failures. Previous spiral bevel and hypoid gears lubrication studies, however, were limited mostly to cases under the full-film lubrication condition with smooth surfaces. In the present study, a comprehensive analysis for gearing geometry, kinematics, mixed lubrication performance, and friction and interfacial flash temperature in spiral bevel and hypoid gears is developed based on a recently developed mixed elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) model that is capable of handling practical cases with 3D machined roughness under severe operating conditions and considering the effect of arbitrary entrainment angle. Obtained results from sample cases show that the simulation model developed can be used as an engineering tool for spiral bevel and hypoid gears design optimization and strength prediction.

2017 ◽  
Vol 140 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wei Pu ◽  
Dong Zhu ◽  
Jiaxu Wang

In this study, a modified mixed lubrication model is developed with consideration of machined surface roughness, arbitrary entraining velocity angle, starvation, and cavitation. Model validation is executed by means of comparison between the obtained numerical results and the available starved elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) data found from some previous studies. A comprehensive analysis for the effect of inlet oil supply condition on starvation and cavitation, mixed EHL characteristics, friction and flash temperature in elliptical contacts is conducted in a wide range of operating conditions. In addition, the influence of roughness orientation on film thickness and friction is discussed under different starved lubrication conditions. Obtained results reveal that inlet starvation leads to an obvious reduction of average film thickness and an increase in interasperity cavitation area due to surface roughness, which results in significant increment of asperity contacts, friction, and flash temperature. Besides, the effect of entrainment angle on film thickness will be weakened if the two surfaces operate under starved lubrication condition. Furthermore, the results show that the transverse roughness may yield thicker EHL films and lower friction than the isotropic and longitudinal if starvation is taken into account. Therefore, the starved mixed EHL model can be considered as a useful engineering tool for industrial applications.


2016 ◽  
Vol 139 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaopeng Wang ◽  
Yuchuan Liu ◽  
Dong Zhu

Elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) is a common mode of fluid-film lubrication in which many machine elements operate. Its thermal behavior is an important concern especially for components working under extreme conditions such as high speeds, heavy loads, and surfaces with significant roughness. Previous thermal EHL (TEHL) studies focused only on the cases with smooth surfaces under the full-film lubrication condition. The present study intends to develop a more realistic unified TEHL model for point contact problems that is capable of simulating the entire transition of lubrication status from the full-film and mixed lubrication all the way down to boundary lubrication with real machined roughness. The model consists of the generalized Reynolds equation, elasticity equation, film thickness equation, and those for lubricant rheology in combination with the energy equation for the lubricant film and the surface temperature equations. The solution algorithms based on the improved semi-system approach have demonstrated a good ability to achieve stable solutions with fast convergence under severe operating conditions. Lubricant film thickness variation and temperature rises in the lubricant film and on the surfaces during the entire transition have been investigated. It appears that this model can be used to predict mixed TEHL characteristics in a wide range of operating conditions with or without three-dimensional (3D) surface roughness involved. Therefore, it can be employed as a useful tool in engineering analyses.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2020 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Mingyong Liu ◽  
Haofeng Ku ◽  
Jinxi Zhang ◽  
Peidong Xu ◽  
Chenhui Wu

Surface contact fatigue is the main failure mode in many mechanical components, such as gears, bearings, and cam-followers. A fatigue life prediction model is proposed for finite line contact under starved thermal elastohydrodynamic lubrication (TEHL) condition in this paper. Then, the effects of inlet oil-supply thickness, slide-to-roll ratio (SRR), and operating conditions on the lubrication performance and fatigue life are investigated. The results show that the lubrication characteristics and fatigue life of finite line contact are obviously different from those of fully flooded situation by introducing the starved lubrication condition. For example, the severe starved conditions lead to a significant increase in friction coefficient and decreased fatigue life. The variation of SRR has an important influence on the fatigue life. With the increase of SRR, the fatigue life decreases firstly and then increases. The stress concentration occurs near the surface when speed is low. In addition, under the low-speed situation, rotation speed variation has little effect on the fatigue life.


Lubricants ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gregory de Boer ◽  
Andreas Almqvist

A two-scale method for modelling the Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication (EHL) of tilted-pad bearings is derived and a range of solutions are presented. The method is developed from previous publications and is based on the Heterogeneous Multiscale Methods (HMM). It facilitates, by means of homogenization, incorporating the effects of surface topography in the analysis of tilted-pad bearings. New to this article is the investigation of three-dimensional bearings, including the effects of both ideal and real surface topographies, micro-cavitation, and the metamodeling procedure used in coupling the problem scales. Solutions for smooth bearing surfaces, and under pure hydrodynamic operating conditions, obtained with the present two-scale EHL model, demonstrate equivalence to those obtained from well-established homogenization methods. Solutions obtained for elastohydrodynamic operating conditions, show a dependency of the solution to the pad thickness and load capacity of the bearing. More precisely, the response for the real surface topography was found to be stiffer in comparison to the ideal. Micro-scale results demonstrate periodicity of the flow and surface topography and this is consistent with the requirements of the HMM. The means of selecting micro-scale simulations based on intermediate macro-scale solutions, in the metamodeling approach, was developed for larger dimensionality and subsequent calibration. An analysis of the present metamodeling approach indicates improved performance in comparison to previous studies.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chongpei Liu ◽  
Bin Zhao ◽  
Wanyou Li ◽  
Xiqun Lu

The bushing profiles have important effects on the performance of journal bearing. In this article, the effects of plain profile, double conical profile, and double parabolic profile on the elastohydrodynamic lubrication of the journal bearing under steady operating conditions are investigated. The journal misalignment and asperity contact between journal and bushing surface are considered, while the modification of the bushing profiles due to running-in is neglected. Finite element method is used for the elastic deformation of bushing surface, while the numerical solution is established by using finite difference method and overrelaxation iterative method. The numerical results reveal that the double parabolic profile with appropriate size can significantly increase the minimum film thickness and reduce the asperity contact pressure and friction, while the maximum film pressure, load-carrying capacity, and leakage flow rate change slightly under steady operating conditions. This study may help to reduce the edge wear and prolong the service life of the journal bearing.


2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tao He ◽  
Ning Ren ◽  
Dong Zhu ◽  
Jiaxu Wang

Efficiency and durability are among the top concerns in mechanical design to minimize environmental impact and conserve natural resources while fulfilling performance requirements. Today mechanical systems are more compact, lightweight, and transmit more power than ever before, which imposes great challenges to designers. Under the circumstances, some simplified analyses may no longer be satisfactory, and in-depth studies on mixed lubrication characteristics, taking into account the effects of 3D surface roughness and possible plastic deformation, are certainly needed. In this paper, the recently developed plasto-elastohydrodynamic lubrication (PEHL) model is employed, and numerous cases with both sinusoidal waviness and real machined roughness are analyzed. It is observed that plastic deformation may occur due to localized high pressure peaks caused by the rough surface asperity contacts, even though the external load is still considerably below the critical load determined at the onset of plastic deformation in the corresponding smooth surface contact. It is also found, based on a series of cases analyzed, that the roughness height, wavelength, material hardening property, and operating conditions may all have significant influences on the PEHL performance, subsurface von Mises stress field, residual stresses, and plastic strains. Generally, the presence of plastic deformation may significantly reduce some of the pressure spikes and peak values of subsurface stresses and make the load support more evenly distributed among all the rough surface asperities in contact.


Author(s):  
Sheng Li ◽  
Danielle Masse

Abstract To investigate the effect of the inlet starvation severity on the flash temperature, which dictates the scuffing failure, a thermal mixed elastohydrodynamic lubrication model is developed for line contacts operating under the starved lubrication condition. The scuffing failure of high speed gearing applications is commonly associated with the very high sliding condition occurring in the vicinity of either the root or the tip, where the shear thinning effect that decreases the lubrication film thickness and increases the contact pressure is significant. Utilizing a generalized Newtonian Reynolds equation, the lubricant viscosity dependence on the shear rate, as well as on the pressure and temperature, is incorporated for the proper and accurate modeling of the tribological behavior under the high sliding condition. A film fraction parameter is employed in the Reynolds equation to include the starvation and cavitation description, eliminating the need for the measured or assumed meniscus location in the inlet zone. Considering different operating and surface roughness conditions, a parametric study is performed to show an asymptotic relationship between the flash temperature and the inlet starvation severity.


2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Mohammadpour ◽  
S. Theodossiades ◽  
H. Rahnejat

Vehicular differential hypoid gears play an important role on the noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) signature of the drivetrain system. Additionally, the generated friction between their mating teeth flanks under varying load-speed conditions is a source of power loss in a drivetrain while absorbing some of the vibration energy. This paper deals with the coupling between system dynamics and analytical tribology in multiphysics, multiscale analysis. Elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) of elliptical point contact of partially conforming hypoid gear teeth pairs with non-Newtonian thermal shear of a thin lubricant film is considered, including boundary friction as the result of asperity interactions on the contiguous surfaces. Tooth contact analysis (TCA) has been used to obtain the input data required for such an analysis. The dynamic behavior and frictional losses of a differential hypoid gear pair under realistic operating conditions are therefore determined. The detailed analysis shows a strong link between NVH refinement and transmission efficiency, a finding not hitherto reported in literature.


1981 ◽  
Vol 103 (1) ◽  
pp. 195-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Simon

The full thermal elastohydrodynamic analysis of the lubrication of hypoid gears is presented. A numerical solution of the coupled Reynolds, elasticity and energy equations for the pressure, temperature and film thickness is obtained. The temperature variations across the oil film and in the pinion and gear teeth are included. The real tooth geometry of the modified hypoid gears is treated. The effect of the operating conditions on the performance characteristics is discussed.


Author(s):  
Ning Ren ◽  
Frances E. Lockwood ◽  
Ilya Piraner ◽  
Amit Gabale

Environmental regulation and high fuel cost are among the leading driving forces behind the demand of energy efficient vehicles. Together with new engine hardware technologies, engine oil is expected to significantly contribute to improving vehicle fuel economy. New fuel-efficient engine oils are often formulated with advanced additives and low viscosity base oils. Understanding the lubrication performance at key engine components such as the cam and follower in valve train systems becomes critically important to ensure engine durability with the new fuel-efficient low viscosity oils. A full numerical mixed lubrication analysis of the cam and roller follower pair is conducted using the three dimensional line contact mixed elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) model. The results show significant effects of surface roughness, topography, slide-to-roll ratio, and viscosity grade on lubricant film, contact pressure, and subsurface stress.


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