Influence of Nanoparticles in Lubricants on the Load Capacity of Hydrostatic Thrust Bearings

Abstract

An analysis for the effect of nanoparticles in lubricants on load capacity is performed to study a rectangular thrust pad hydrostatic bearing with a central recess. The closed-form solution of the bearing load is derived analytically and presented for nanofluids with interparticle interaction. Results reveal that in the presence of nanoparticles, the enhanced viscosity could result in an increase in bearing load; moreover, this increase dramatically increases as particle volume fraction and/or interparticle interaction increases. The effect of nanoparticles on the bearing load can be magnified by decreasing the bearing gap.