Load-Carrying Capacity of the Lubricating Film in the Gap Between Surfaces Textured by Hemispherical Pores

Abstract

The load support of a lubricating film that separates the surfaces textured by identical equidistant spaced hemispherical pores was investigated. Two-dimensional time-dependent Reynolds equation is solved numerically for different pore-radius-to-gap and cell-dimension-to-pore-radius ratios and for different relative pore positions of opposite surfaces. The results are compared with the data obtained for the case when only one of the opposite surfaces is covered with pores. The obtained data show a maximum in the carrying capacity of the lubricating film when the cell-to-pore-radii ratio is approximately equal to two, in the case of two opposite surfaces with pores. At small pore radii and with increasing cell dimensions, the load support of two surfaces with pores is much greater than in the case of one surface with pores. This behavior reverses with increasing pore diameter. The presented analysis and the provided MATLAB programs are applicable for mechanisms having rubbing mechanical parts with surfaces covered with pores.