A Hybrid Mobility Solution Method for Dynamically Loaded Misaligned Journal Bearings

This paper presents a hybrid mobility solution approach to the analysis of dynamically loaded misaligned journal bearings. Mobility data obtained for misaligned bearings (calculated from a finite element representation of the Reynolds equation) are compared with existing curve-fitted mobility maps representative of a perfectly aligned bearing. A relative error analysis of mobility magnitude and direction provides a set of misaligned journal bearing configurations (midplane eccentricity ratio and normalized misalignment angle) where existing curve-fitted mobility map components based on aligned bearings can be used to calculate the resulting journal motion. For bearing configurations where these mobility maps are not applicable, the numerical simulation process proceeds using a complete finite element solution of the Reynolds equation. A set of numerical examples representing misaligned main and connecting rod bearings in a four-stroke automotive engine illustrate the hybrid solution method. Substantial savings in computational time are obtained using the hybrid approach over the complete finite element solution method without loss of computational accuracy.

The Wear Characteristics of Graphene as an Atomically-Thin Protective Coating

Lamellar atomically-thin sheets such as graphene (and its bulk equivalent graphite) and molybdenum disulfide have emerged as excellent solid lubricants at the macro scale and show great promise as protective coatings for nanoscopic applications. In this study, the failure mechanisms of graphene under sliding are examined using atomistic simulations. An atomic tip is slid over a graphene membrane that is adhered to a semi-infinite substrate. The impact of sliding velocity and substrate rigidity on the wear and frictional behavior of graphene is studied. In addition, the interplay of adhesive and abrasive wear on the graphene coating is also examined. The preliminary results indicate that graphene has excellent potential as a nanoscale due to its atomically-thin configuration and high load carrying capacity.

Two Dimensional Modified Reynolds Equation Including Pressure Dependent Viscosity Effect

The Reynolds equation plays an important role for predicting pressure distributions for fluid film bearing analysis, One of the assumptions on the Reynolds equation is that the viscosity is independent of pressure. This assumption is still valid for most fluid film bearing applications, in which the maximum pressure is less than 1 GPa. However, in elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) where the lubricant is subjected to extremely high pressure, this assumption should be reconsidered. The 2D modified Reynolds equation is derived in this study including pressure-dependent viscosity, The solutions of 2D modified Reynolds equation is compared with that of the classical Reynolds equation for the ball bearing case (elastic solids). The pressure distribution obtained from modified equation is slightly higher pressures than the classical Reynolds equations.

Single Particle Interaction Properties: Investigations on the Coefficient of Restitution and Coefficient of Friction

Understanding granular flows has always been important for predicting natural phenomena such as rockslides and soil erosion, as well as industrial processes such as coal-based fossil fuel systems and solids processing. As such, it becomes important to understand granular flows from both a classical granular flow and tribological perspective. Inherently important in the study of granular flows is the study of the individual particle level interactions, which define the global behavior of the flow. The current work examines both the coefficient of restitution (COR) and coefficient of friction (COF) for various material combinations. COR and tribological experiments are performed on various sphere and plate (disk) materials, such as low carbon steel, tungsten carbide (WC), and NITINOL 60.

Analysis of the Lubrication Regimes at the Small End and Big End of a Connecting Rod of a High Performance Motorbike Engine

In the present paper, the algorithm proposed by Giacopini et. al. [1], based on a mass-conserving formulation of the Reynolds equation using the concept of complementarity is suitably extended to include the effects of compressibility, piezoviscosity and shear-thinning on the lubricant properties. This improved algorithm is employed to analyse the performance of the lubricated small end and big end bearings of a connecting rod of a high performance motorbike engine. The application of the algorithm proposed to both the small end and the big end of a con-rod is challenging because of the different causes that sustain the hydrodynamic lubrication in the two cases. In the con-rod big end, the fluid film is mainly generated by the relative high speed rotation between the rod and the crankshaft. The relative speed between the two races forms a wedge of fluid that assures appropriate lubrication and avoids undesired direct contacts. On the contrary, at the con-rod small end the relative rotational speed is low and a complete rotation between the mating surfaces does not occurs since the con-rod only oscillates around its vertical axis. Thus, at every revolution of the crankshaft, there are two different moments in which the relative rotational speed between the con-rod and the piston pin is null. Therefore, the dominant effect in the lubrication is the squeeze caused by the high loads transmitted through the piston pin. In particular both combustion forces and inertial forces contribute to the squeeze effect. This work shows how the formulation developed by the authors is capable of predicting the performance of journal bearings in the unsteady regime, where cavitation and reformation occur several times. Moreover, the effects of the pressure and the shear rate on the density and on the viscosity of the lubricant are taken into account.

Stiffness and Damping Analysis of a Single EHL Contact Between the Rolling Element and Raceways Under Wider Load and Speed Ranges

The numerical analysis for the equivalent stiffness and damping of a single EHL contact between the rolling element and raceways under wider load and speed ranges is presented. The unsteady EHL model and free vibration model are applied to describe the motion characteristics of the rolling element. The inlet length and dimensionless natural frequency are determined according to the corresponding working load and speed. The DC-FFT method is implemented in order to increase the computational efficiency associated with elastic deformations and the semi-system approach is applied to ensure solution convergence under severe conditions which makes the analysis of stiffness and damping in the larger ranges of load and speed possible. The numerical results demonstrate that the stiffness increases with the increasing load and decreases with speed. However, the changes of the damping are complex, which are different in various load and speed ranges, especially under heavier load and higher speed. It is also indicated that the stiffness and damping increases with the increase in ambient viscosity and the decrease in pressure-viscosity coefficient.

Squeeze Film Flow Analysis Using Moving Particle Semi-Implicit Calculation

We have presented an application of the modified Moving Particle Semi-implicit (MPS) method for squeeze film flows. In addition to calculating the flow field of a squeeze film using the full Navier-Stokes equations, this method has the advantage of being meshless, which gives it the capability of analyzing dynamic and/or highly transient squeeze films by discretizing the domain as a series of particles and numerically analyzing inter-particle interactions. Although past literature has indicated the MPS method in its original form to be unstable in terms of its calculation of pressure, a modified algorithm was implemented to provide agreement between the numerical results and the analytical solutions.

Variation of the Thermal Properties During Friction Under Shock Conditions

During friction under shock conditions, interface is submitted to very strong heat flux. Thus, it may reach a temperature as high as melt temperature of one of the materials constituting the contact. As a consequence, the income and outcome of heat at the interface governs the friction and the contact behavior. This article exposes a model that resolves the non-linear heat equation in the vicinity of the interface. This way, it takes into account the variations of thermal properties of materials constituting the interface. First results indicate that such variations influence the tribological behavior of the contact.

Influences of Trace Water in Hydrogen and Argon on the Tribological Properties of Pure Iron

Tribological properties of pure iron were studied in argon environments containing trace water which is controlled at the value between 1 and 10,000 ppb and virtually no oxygen. The experimental data were compared with those obtained in our previous study with the same conditions of experiment but in hydrogen. The influences of trace water were recognized in both gases and confirmed not peculiar to a hydrogen environment. The coefficients of friction and specific wear rates were different to some extent between argon and hydrogen environments. The differences were supposed to be attributed to the influences of hydrogen atoms which chemisorbed on pure iron atoms appeared on the nascent surface made by sliding. Whether hydrogen and water have synergy effect on influencing tribological properties was not clarified in this study.

Influence of Hydrodynamic Fluid Pressure and Shoe Tread Depth on Available Coefficient of Friction

Slip and fall accidents are a major occupational health concern. Identifying the lubrication mechanisms affecting shoe-floor-contaminant friction under biofidelic (testing conditions that mimic human slipping) conditions is critical to identifying unsafe surfaces and designing a slip-resistant work environment. The purpose of this study is to measure the effects of varying tread design, tread depth and fluid viscosity on underfoot hydrodynamic pressure, the load supported by the fluid (i.e. load carrying capacity), and the coefficient of friction (COF) during a simulated slip. A single vinyl floor material and two shoe types (work shoe and sportswear shoe) with three different tread depths (no tread, half tread and full tread) were tested under two lubrication conditions: 1) 90% glycerol and 10% water (219 cP) and 2) 1.5% Detergent-98.5% (1.8cP) water solutions. Hydrodynamic pressures were measured with a fluid pressure sensor embedded in the floor and a forceplate was used to measure the friction and normal forces used to calculate coefficient of friction. The study showed that hydrodynamic pressure developed when high viscosity fluids were combined with no tread and resulted in a major reduction of COF (0.005). Peak hydrodynamic pressures (and load supported by the fluid) for the no tread-high viscous conditions were 234 kPa (200.5 N) and 87.63 kPa (113.3 N) for the work and sportswear shoe, respectively. Hydrodynamic pressures were negligible when at least half the tread was present or when a low viscosity fluid was used despite the fact that many of these conditions also resulted in dangerously low COF values. The study suggests that hydrodynamic lubrication is only relevant when high viscous fluids are combined with little or no tread and that other lubrication mechanisms besides hydrodynamic effects are relevant to slipping like boundary lubrication.