The Establishment and Numerical Calculation of Thin Film Lubrication Model

Abstract

Thin film lubrication (TFL) and elasto-hydrodynamic lubrication (EHL) are different lubrication states, their lubrication mechanisms are different, but the transition from EHL to TFL is a continuous process at the aspect of film thickness change, it is important to establish a physical-numerical model that can be suited for both EHL and TFL. Based on rheological, the change of micro thickness is expressed by the change of viscosity, then the micro problem of TFL can be turn to macro problem. The adsorption layer is divided into two parts formatted by static contact and shear force in the calculation. In a given static adsorption film, other oil film parts will be comprehensive consideration, modified formula of the overall average equivalent viscosity is gained by the method of combining numerical calculation and experiment, then numerical model is established for both EHL and TFL. TFL and EHL typical characteristics and the effectiveness of the model can be obviously shown by the results.