Thermohydrodynamic Lubrication Research Articles

Lubrication flow law and cooling mechanism considering cavitation in mechanical seals with Rayleigh step pattern

The purpose of this research is to obtain the cavitation cooling characteristics and flow law in mechanical seals with Rayleigh step pattern. A new cooling approach has been proposed, which is of great significance to preventing liquid film vaporization and limiting thermal deformation of sealing face. Based on the previous literatures focused only on cavitation or viscous heat, the thermohydrodynamic lubrication (THD) and hydrodynamic lubrication (HD) numerical models with cavitation in mechanical seals are developed to obtain the cavitation cooling characteristics and flow mechanism by FLUENT software. The results show that the liquid film cavitation occurs severely in the reverse Rayleigh step and generates a remarkable local cooling effect to the fluid film and sealing faces, which leads to a temperature rise reduction of up to 39.2% and a leakage rate reduction of up to 72.7%. Meanwhile, the high-temperature zone at downstream side migrates upstream, especially, forming temperature valley and peak zones at liquid film rupture and reformation boundaries. The cooling level is controlled by the intensity and area of cavitation. Moreover, the vapor phase block of cavitation, the pressure flow and the shear flow collectively generate a vortex flow behind the cavitation zone in the reverse Rayleigh step. The center and intensity of vortices are closely related to the cavitation area, viscous heat, shear flow and pressure flow. Under THD conditions, the vortex is enhanced due to the viscosity loss and the small cavitation area. The cavitation, viscous heat and vortex flow have important effects on the sealing performance.

Study of the sealing performance of a high-speed deep groove mechanical seal thermodynamic lubrication model

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate the sealing performance of different deep groove mechanical seals by considering the changing law of dynamic pressure effect and temperature gradient caused by high speed and high pressure.Design/methodology/approachA thermohydrodynamic lubrication model (THD) of the mechanical seal was constructed and solved using the commercial software FLUENT. The pressure and temperature distributions of the fluid under different groove types, as well as the sealing performance under different pressures, rotational speeds and sealing gaps, are obtained.FindingsThe annular groove (AG) can effectively reduce the temperature, and the T-type spiral groove (STG) can effectively inhibit the leakage. The increase of pressure and rotational speed leads to the enhancement of dynamic pressure effect and the increase of leakage, while the sealing gap increases and the leakage increases while taking away more heat. The choice of groove type is very important to the impact of sealing performance.Originality/valueIn consideration of the beneficial effect of deep grooves on cooling performance, the viscous temperature equation and the impact of the thermodynamic lubrication model are evaluated in conjunction with the sealing performance of four distinct groove types. This approach provides a theoretical basis for the optimal design of mechanical seals.Peer reviewThe peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/ILT-05-2024-0184/

Study on rotor-bearing dynamic performance of a novel motorized spindle supported by water-lubricated hydrodynamic spiral grooved bearings

The water-lubricated hydrodynamic spiral grooved bearings have been utilized to support the high-speed motorized spindle. However, the viscous damping effect of water is much weaker than that of the oil, so the dynamic behavior and the stability of the motorized spindle with the water-lubricated spiral grooved bearings need to be studied thoroughly. This paper established an improved rotor-bearing dynamic model for the motorized spindle by incorporating both the distributed effect of journal bearing and the tilting effect of thrust bearing into a turbulent thermohydrodynamic lubrication model. An experimental setup for the motorized spindle was developed to measure the spindle dynamic behaviors and verify the established dynamic model. The critical speeds, the transient dynamics and the stability of the motorized spindle are studied theoretically and experimentally. The results show that the motorized spindle with the water-lubricated spiral grooved bearings can operate at high speeds with a satisfactory supporting stiffness and exhibits an excellent operational stability.

Analysis of Thermo-Hydrodynamic Lubrication of Three-Lobe Semi-Floating Ring Bearing Considering Temperature–Viscosity Effect and Static Pressure Flow

Analysis of Thermo-Hydrodynamic Lubrication of Three-Lobe Semi-Floating Ring Bearing Considering Temperature–Viscosity Effect and Static Pressure Flow

Thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication and energy dissipation mechanism of a pump-turbine thrust bearing in load-rejection process

The dynamic behavior of the pump-turbine thrust bearing is important to the safety operation of the unit. This paper analyzed the lubrication and energy dissipation mechanism of pump-turbine thrust bearing during load-rejection based on the thermo-hydrodynamic model. The results show that the variation of the axial force and the maximum pad surface pressure is basically consistent with that of the inclination of the pad surface. The change of the friction loss is consistent with the change of rotational speed, while the change of pad surface temperature is affected by the combination of pad inclination and rotational speed. The chaotic flow in the oil tank is accompanied by different forms of vortices, such as Taylor vortices, vortex pairs, and Karman vortices, and results in a significant asymmetry in the pressure distribution. The flow in the bearing pad groove has an effect on the energy dissipation in the oil film. This paper provides a theoretical basis for the design and optimization of thrust bearings, and provides a reference for solving the problems of wear, oil mist, and other related problems of thrust bearings in engineering.

The effects of bubble evolution and oil shear thinning on the static behavior of bubbly oil lubricated bearing

Bubble evolution and shear thinning effect are main factors affecting lubrication behavior of bubbly oil. In this study, a thermohydrodynamic lubrication model for the bubbly oil considering the bubble evolution and the shear thinning effect was established based on the multiphase mixtures theory. The influence of bubble evolution and shear thinning effect on the static behavior of bubbly oil lubricated bearing was analyzed, and an experimental study was conducted to verify the model. The result shows that the bubble radius is mainly dependent on the liquid pressure; the bearing static behavior is affected by the bubble evolution through the interface effect; the shear thinning effect of the pure oil can be enhanced with regarding the bubble evolution effect.

Thermohydrodynamic Lubrication Characteristics of Piston Rings in Diesel Engine Considering Transient Heat Transfer under the Parameterized Surface Texture of Cylinder Liners

The cylinder liner and piston ring form the most crucial friction pair in the diesel engine, contributing 35–40% of its overall friction losses. Recent research indicates that transient heat transfer significantly affects piston ring lubrication. However, the impact of such a transfer on varying surface textures and lubrication traits remains unclear. This paper takes the piston ring–cylinder liner of a certain diesel engine as the research object, which is based on a two-dimensional averaged Reynolds function and Greenwood–Tripp micro convex body contact model; establishes a numerical calculation model of the transient heat fluid lubrication characteristics of a vertical piston ring–cylinder liner assembly by combining the oil film thickness equation, energy equation, lubricating oil viscosity–temperature, and viscosity pressure characteristics; avoids large errors associated with assuming different temperature values for lubricants; and also uses the cylinder liner surface texturing technique to examine the effects of surface texturing on lubrication properties in the presence of transient thermal fluids. The findings indicate that employing transient thermal fluid for determining the mean value of the oil film temperature in isothermal lubrication calculations yields comparable values for minimum oil film thickness and frictional power consumption, while the friction power consumption calculated by the transient thermal fluid is slightly lower. The depth of the recesses on the surface of the cylinder liner should be minimized, while the radius of the texture should be maximized, taking into consideration the current circumstances. Compared with a cylindrical texture, a spherical texture achieves lower friction with good lubrication indexes.

Thermo-hydrodynamic Analysis of Multistep Journal Bearing using Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulation

Journal bearing is a machine element that is used to maintain the continuous rotation of the shaft on its axis. The rising demand for efficient and economical journal bearing applications has resulted in increased demand for high-speed machines. An increase in engine speed raises the distribution of pressure, temperature, and vapor volume fraction. Most of the research still only focuses on increasing pressure distribution and load-carrying capacity. However, the value of friction force, temperature distribution, and vapor volume fraction must also be considered such that the lubrication of the journal bearing is close to the real situation. Therefore, the research was conducted by varying the geometry modelling through multistep textures using viscous boundaries and thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication. Owing to the high load and speed usage on multistep journal bearings, research on the effect of eccentricity ratio and inlet and outlet temperatures on the tribological performance of multistep journal bearings was conducted. The analysis has been performed using a multistep journal bearing modelling 3D computational fluid dynamics considering the effect of cavitation on temperature. The results of this study indicate that the use of multistep textures on journal bearings can reduce friction force, temperature, and vapor volume fraction. The variation of the eccentricity ratio shows that a high eccentricity ratio leads to a high three parameters (i.e., friction force, temperature, and vapor volume fraction). Finally, for variations of inlet and outlet temperatures, such parameters are high when the inlet and outlet temperatures are high.

Research on two-phase thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication performance considering bubble dynamics

Gas-liquid two-phase fluid in the lubrication gap exist in many important engineering tribo-pairs. Based on the Reynolds equation, the bubble dynamics equation, and the full energy equation for two-phase fluids, the thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication problem in the lubrication gap is investigated. The evolution of the fluid phase composition with operating time and its impact on the thermodynamic properties are studied using the developed model. The mechanisms by which sliding velocity, clearance, surface dilatational viscosity, surface tension, and initial gas volume fraction affect two-phase fluid lubrication behavior are evaluated. The results show that hydrodynamic pressure-driven bubbles eventually condense in the dispersion area and have a major impact on the temperature distribution. Velocity and clearance affect the gas-phase expansion region and initial formation location in the steady state, respectively. The pressure amplitude, bubble expansion, and horizontal and vertical gas phase expansion in the dispersion zone were affected differently by surface dilatational viscosity and surface tension. It becomes difficult to preserve the initial gas-phase composition inside the pressure convergence zone when bubble migration is taken into account, which may be crucial for establishing gas-liquid two-phase lubrication.

Time History of Maximum Bearing Temperature Based on a Simplified Thermohydrodynamic Lubrication Theory

An overshoot phenomenon of bearing temperature in hydrodynamic journal bearings may be observed during a sudden start-up experiment. This phenomenon implies that the maximum bearing temperature in acceleration operation may exceed the predicted one which can be predicted accurately by applying a state-of-the-art steady state thermohydrodynamic lubrication (THL) model. This paper presents the maximum bearing temperature including the one during acceleration operation by using a simplified THL model that is newly proposed for a transient THL analysis. It is found that the overshooted temperature can be qualitatively predicted by using the transient THL model that incorporates properly the interaction between the motion of journal center and the viscous dissipation, even if it is a simple model. Next, the transient temperature during slow acceleration operation and also those toward higher dimensional steady state journal rotational speed are calculated and they are found to be in qualitative agreement with the measurements. The oil film characteristics such as oil film pressure, temperature and thickness after reaching the steady state equilibrium do not depend on the value of initial journal eccentricity ratio in the transient analysis. However, when the values are different, the characteristics immediately after starting rotation change largely. In the case of the value 1.00, it is found to give a prediction that agrees qualitatively with the characteristics measured in the experiment.

A Mixed Lubrication Deterministic Model of an Elastic Support Water-Lubricated Tilting Pad Thrust Bearing

In order to study the effect of surface roughness on lubrication performance of an elastic support water-lubricated tilting pad thrust bearing, a mixed lubrication (ML) deterministic model is hereby presented based on a unified Reynolds equation model. This very model incorporates the elastic–plastic deformation of asperities and polymer matrix of the thrust pad, as well as the elastic deformation of the rubber support. The randomly distributed surface roughness of the thrust pad is generated by a mathematical model and shares the same distribution characteristics as the measured surface roughness. The Greenwood and Williamson asperity contact model and thin plate deformation model are combined to solve the asperities contact stress and deformation. Meanwhile, the bearing ML performance is compared with the results calculated by a thermohydrodynamic (THD) lubrication model and a thermo-elasto-hydrodynamic (TEHD) lubrication model, while the film thickness is also compared with measurements. The results show that the water film thickness calculated by the ML model is smaller than that by the THD model and the TEHD model, but the water film temperature is higher. The roughness has a great influence on the contact area ratio and the lubrication state, but little effect on the average film thickness. A higher roughness indicates a higher rotational speed required for the bearing to achieve full hydrodynamic lubrication. The film thickness calculated by the mixed lubrication model is closer to the measured results. Overall, it is proved that the mixed lubrication model can more accurately predict the lubrication performance of bearings. Compared to the thin plate deformation model, the elastic deformation simulation based on the half-infinite space model severely overestimates the elastic deformation of the pad surface, making it unsuitable for calculating the elastic deformation of the polymer matrix of the thrust pad under contact force or water film pressure. This ML deterministic model provides an effective means for high-precision prediction of the lubrication performance of the elastic supported water-lubricated thrust bearings coupled with multi-layer soft materials.

Thermo-Hydrodynamic Lubrication Analysis of Slipper Pair Considering Wear Profile

The profile of sealing land is a sensitive factor affecting the thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication characteristics of the slipper pair. In this paper, the non-uniform wear of the running surface under the slipper was presented and defined as the boundary condition. Based on the finite volume method and the successive over-relaxation iteration method, a discrete numerical model coupled with the temperature, pressure, and thickness of the oil film was constructed. The Newton and sequential circulation methods were used to solve the coupling equations. The influence of the wear profile on the film thickness, sliding attitude, and leakage were discussed. The analyzed results show that the control of the wear on the outer side of sealing land and the contour vertex position, and the avoidance of the wear on the inner side of sealing land could improve the thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication performance of the slipper pair.

Thermo-Hydrodynamic Effect of Gas Split Floating Ring Seal with Rayleigh Step Grooves

The force equilibrium and moment equilibrium play a significant role on the sealing performance of gas split floating ring seals. A small deflection angle may generate seriously wear on sealing surface and cause seal failure. Therefore, the thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication analysis of gas split floating ring seal with Rayleigh grooves is investigated considering the deflection angle and frictional heat of surface contact, which is beneficial to grasp the hydrodynamic characteristics and rules under high-temperature and high-speed conditions. Pressure and temperature distributions of sealing rings are numerically calculated for the cases with different deflection angle, rational speed, seal pressure and ambient temperature. Then, the hydrodynamic effect and sealing performance are analyzed. The obtained results show that, the surface Rayleigh step grooves do not present obvious hydrodynamic effect when split seal ring has no deflection. While, a significant hydrodynamic effect can be obtained when the split seal ring presents a deflection angle about dozens of micro radians. Here, a 10% increase of opening force is achieved when the deflection angle reaches 80 μrad in the case of speed 30,000 r/min and seal pressure 0.2 MPa. Moreover, the hydrodynamic effect becomes obvious with increasing deflection angle as well as rotational speed. Meanwhile, the growth of rotational speed results in an obvious increase of film temperature. The increase of ambient temperature has a significant influence on the decrease of leakage rate. When the ambient temperature increases from 340 K to 540 K, the leakage rate reduces exceeding 50%, however, it does not present obvious effect on the opening force. The proposed model has the potential to provide the theoretical basis and design guidance for surface grooves of gas split floating ring seal in the future.

Research on the thermohydrodynamic lubrication performance of engine main bearing with rough surface considering the axial motion and deformation of crankshaft

In this paper, the influence of the thermal effect on the lubrication performance of engine main bearing with rough surface considering the axial motion of crankshaft is investigated. In the analysis, the crankshaft-bearing system of a four-cylinder four-stroke engine is taken as the object. The axial motion of crankshaft is measured by the engine bench test. The journal load of main bearing and crankshaft deformation are calculated by the whole crankshaft finite-element method. The analysis model is established based on the average flow lubrication model. The lubrication of main bearing is analyzed by the dynamic method. The temperatures of lubricating oil and bearing are calculated by the energy equation and solid heat conduction equation. The results show that the influence degree of the axial motion of crankshaft on the lubrication of engine main bearing with rough surface is greatly affected by the thermal effect. When the thermal effect is considered, the influence of the axial motion of crankshaft on the lubrication of engine main bearing makes its working condition deteriorate further. When the axial motion of crankshaft is considered, the influence of the thermal effect on the lubrication of different main bearings varies significantly.

Thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication analysis of journal bearings using a simplified THL model and prediction of onset speed of instability (Application of adiabatic boundary condition to the journal side)

Thermo-hydrodynamic lubrication analysis of journal bearings using a simplified THL model and prediction of onset speed of instability (Application of adiabatic boundary condition to the journal side)

A New Design Method of Cylindrical Bearings Based on a Simplified Thermohydrodynamic Lubrication Model

A New Design Method of Cylindrical Bearings Based on a Simplified Thermohydrodynamic Lubrication Model

On the thermohydrodynamic performance of aerated lubricants in steadily- and dynamically-loaded journal bearings

The effect of aerated oil, containing air bubbles, on the steadily and dynamically loaded journal bearing is investigated. The study is based on the thermohydrodynamic (THD) lubrication theory, which fully couples the Reynolds equation with the energy for the oil and heat conduction equations for solids through the oil viscosity. The oil’s effective viscosity is influenced by the presence of bubbles via the surface tension and/or the volume fraction. The Reynolds equation is solved using the mass conservation algorithm and the two-dimensional equations for the temperature fields both in oil and solids are solved simultaneously to save computational time. The bubble radius, density, and viscosity are directly influenced by the pressure and temperature fields, requiring updating their values at each pressure and temperature. The simulations show that with a realistic viscosity model, the effect of the air bubbles in the lubricating oil on the pressure and temperature fields is small at normal operating speeds, while the density and the effective viscosity are reduced noticeably due to bubbles.

Thermohydrodynamic lubrication analysis of misaligned journal bearing considering surface roughness and couple stress

The modified average Reynolds equation for friction pairs with arbitrary three-dimensional rough surfaces lubricated by couple stress fluid is derived by the average flow method. And the performance parameters under the effect of couple stress, surface roughness, journal misalignment, and thermal effect are obtained with the finite difference numerical method. The surface roughness factor plays an important role even though the nominal eccentricity ratio is small. With the increase of the nominal eccentricity ratio, the greater values of the couple stress parameter, the greater values of performance parameters except for the dimensionless maximum oil film temperature and the dimensionless friction power. With the increase of the degree of misalignment, the greater values of the couple stress parameter, the greater the dimensionless maximum average film pressure, the dimensionless load capacity, and the dimensionless misalignment moment. As the value of the couple stress parameter is increased, the greater values of the dimensionless surface roughness, the greater values of the performance parameters except for the dimensionless side leakage. This research can widely use in various forms of friction pairs such as thrust bearings, sliding bearings, piston ring-cylinder liners.

A simplified thermohydrodynamic lubrication model for application to the design of cylindrical journal bearings with two-axial oil grooves

A simplified thermohydrodynamic lubrication model for application to the design of cylindrical journal bearings with two-axial oil grooves

Thermohydrodynamic investigation for supercritical carbon dioxide high speed tilting pad bearings considering turbulence and real gas effect

A global heat balance method for supercritical carbon dioxide (S-CO2) high speed tilting pad bearings was developed, in which the real gas effect, variable thermodynamic properties, and turbulence effect were considered. The bearing characteristics can be obtained by the partial derivative method embracing dynamic variations of complete variables. Then thermohydrodynamic lubrication mechanisms for S-CO2 bearings are studied, and results indicate that the real gas effect of thermal compressibility is significant. The influence of the thermal effect on the static and dynamic characteristics of bearings is caused by changes in density, specific heat, and thermal expansion coefficient rather than viscosity, which is totally different from oil bearings. In general, the influence of thermohydrodynamic lubrication on static characteristics of S-CO2 tilting pad bearings is more obvious than that on dynamic coefficients. For example, the maximum deviation of damping coefficients of a bearing with parameters in this research at a certain speed range is 8%, and that of the load capacity at the corresponding speed is 10.7%. However, the influence of the thermal effect on dynamic coefficients is varied at different rotating speeds.