Numerical analysis of the heat transfer of gears under oil dip lubrication

Abstract

Reliable gearbox operation is based on heat balance. The heat transfer of gears is closely related to the fluid flow of a gearbox. This study focuses on the heat transfer between oil dip-lubricated gears and fluid. A numerical analysis of the mechanisms and influences on the heat transfer coefficient of gears is carried out. The results show that the local interaction between gears and fluid strongly influences the gear heat transfer. The oil wetting and circumferential speed are particularly influential. The fling-off model is capable of predicting the heat transfer coefficient between gears and fluid with reasonable accuracy. The prediction accuracy of analytical models can be improved by incorporating fluid flow properties obtained from numerical calculations.