Film Thickness Study of Lubricated, Compliant Contacts

Author(s):  
C. Myant ◽  
H. A. Spikes

Obtaining lubricant film thickness values within a compliant contact is a challenging problem for several reasons [1]: • Lubricant film thickness covers a wide range of values. • The required measuring range is from fractions to hundreds of microns. • Contact area is considerably large when compared to “hard”, metallic contacts. • Many soft components have a high roughness compared to surfaces usually investigated with established techniques.

1997 ◽  
Vol 119 (3) ◽  
pp. 456-461 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qian (Jane) Wang ◽  
Fanghui Shi ◽  
Si C. Lee

Numerical analyses of finite journal bearings operating with large eccentricity ratios were conducted to better understand the mixed lubrication phenomena in conformal contacts. The average Reynolds equation derived by Patir and Cheng was utilized in the lubrication analysis. The influence function, calculated numerically using the finite element method, was employed to compute the bearing deformation. The effects of bearing surface roughness were incorporated in the present analysis for the calculations of the asperity contact pressure and the asperity contact area. The numerical solutions of the hydrodynamic and asperity contact pressures, lubricant film thickness, and asperity contact area were evaluated based on a simulated bearing-journal geometry. The calculations revealed that the asperity contact pressure may vary significantly along both the width and the circumferential directions. It was also shown that the asperity contacts and the lubricant film thickness were strongly dependent on the bearing width, asperity orientation, and operating conditions.


Author(s):  
R J Chittenden ◽  
D Dowson ◽  
C M Taylor

Experimental investigations of the lubricant film thickness generated in elastohydrodynamic elliptical contacts have been undertaken since the early 1960s. The majority of these studies has been concerned with circular or near circular contact situations, although a wide range of geometries in which lubricant entrainment was directed along the minor axis of the contact ellipse has also been considered. The information available on lubricant film thickness in geometrical conditions where lubricant entrainment was aligned with the major axis of the contact ellipse has, however, been severely limited. The experimental investigation described in this paper is therefore concerned with the measurement of lubricant film thickness in the unusual geometrical conditions recently analysed theoretically by the authors (1, 2). The measurements were made with the aid of a twin disc machine for geometries ranging from a radius ratio of unity down to a value of 0.112. The experimental apparatus is described and details are given of the special test discs which were manufactured to produce such geometries. The capacitance measurement technique adopted is detailed along with the numerical model developed to allow the measured values of inter-disc capacitance to be interpreted in terms of the lubricant film thickness. The lubricant film thickness developed in four geometrical situations was investigated at four rotational speeds and five loads. This allowed a comparison to be made with the film thickness values predicted by recent elastohydrodynamic theory for changes in both speed and load. The film thickness deduced from the capacitance measurements was considered to be representative of that found at the centre of contact, and good agreement was found between experiment and all aspects of the theoretical predictions.


2018 ◽  
Vol 141 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pan Dou ◽  
Tonghai Wu ◽  
Zhaopeng Luo

The ultrasonic technique is very effective in measuring lubricant film thickness in a noninvasive manner. To estimate the film thickness with reflection signals, two main ultrasonic models are often applied in cases of different film thicknesses; they are the spring model for thin films and the resonant model for thick films. However, when measuring oil film thicknesses distributed in a wide range, there is an inherent blind zone between these two models. This problem is especially prominent in online monitoring because the abrupt variation of film thickness is highly correlated with the occurrence of abnormal conditions. To address this issue, we further proposed a method using the phase spectrum of reflection coefficient which can cover a wide range of film thicknesses. The slight variation of reflection signal in the blind zone can then be identified and bridged the measurement gap between those two traditional models. A calibration rig was used to verify the theoretical analysis and the results indicated that the developed model is capable of providing reliable ultrasonic measurement of lubricant film thicknesses in a wide range.


1990 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dongchu Zhao

A method for measuring the lubricant condition with strain gage in rolling element bearings and the instrument used are introduced. In order to illustrate the method and the instrument, the theory of measuring lubricant films in rolling element bearings using strain technique, test apparatus, microcomputer hardware as well as software, flow charts for the main program and subprograms, are first described in detail. In addition, the lubricant film thickness is measured for several different lubricants and results are compared with theoretical ones. It is demonstrated that using the method and the instrument introduced in this paper, one can measure the lubricant condition inside bearings very accurately.


Author(s):  
SR Bewsher ◽  
M Mohammadpour ◽  
H Rahnejat ◽  
G Offner ◽  
O Knaus

In order to accurately predict the lubricant film thickness and generated friction in any tribological contact, it is important to determine appropriate boundary conditions, taking into account the oil availability and extent of starvation. This paper presents a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model of a piston ring pack for prediction of lubricant film thickness, friction and total power loss. The model takes into account starvation caused by reverse flow at the conjunctional inlet wedge, and applied to a ring pack, comprising a compression and scraper ring. Inlet boundaries are calculated for an engine cycle of a four-cylinder, four-stroke gasoline engine operating at 1500 r/min with conditions pertaining to the New European Drive Cycle. The analysis shows the two main sources of starvation: first, due to a physical lack of inlet meniscus and second, due to reverse flow at the inlet wedge significantly affecting the prevailing conditions from the generally assumed idealised boundary conditions. Such an approach has not hitherto been reported in literature.


MTZ worldwide ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 83 (1) ◽  
pp. 28-37
Author(s):  
Henry Brunskill ◽  
Andrew Hunter ◽  
Hosung Nam ◽  
Junsik Park

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