On the Surface Dimple Phenomena in Elliptical TEHL Contacts With Arbitrary Entrainment

2002 ◽  
Vol 125 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-109 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Wang ◽  
Peiran Yang ◽  
Motohiro Kaneta ◽  
Hiroshi Nishikawa

Theoretical analysis and optical interferometry experiments are performed to investigate the dimple phenomena in thermal elastohydrodynamic lubrication (TEHL) of elliptical contacts under pure sliding conditions. The lubricant entrainment is along the major and minor axes of the Hertzian contact ellipse or at some intermediate angle. Good agreement is achieved between theoretical and experimental results and the surface dimple phenomena occurring in glass-steel conjunctions are explained by the temperature-viscosity wedge mechanism. The influence of the angle between the minor axis and the entrainment vector on the position and shape of the dimple, the central and minimum film thickness, the temperature distribution and the frictional coefficient is discussed.

Engineers have known since the last century that a substantial film of lubricant must be present at the contact between gear teeth. However, it is only in the last twenty-five years that analytical techniques have developed to the extent where theoretical predictions of film thickness are in accord with experience. This has come about through the in­ corporation in analysis of the effects of elastic distortion of the solids and the enhancement of lubricant viscosity due to pressure. Formulae for the prediction of both minimum and central film thickness in con­centrated contacts such as those occurring in gear sets, rolling element bearings and cam and follower arrangements are now available to designers. Elastohydrodynamic analyses have almost entirely been restricted to the case of pure rolling in which the direction of lubricant entrainment has coincided with the minor axis of the Hertzian contact ellipse. While such analyses are indeed satisfactory for a wide range of practical configurations, there are situations for which the effects of flow direction have not been adequately explored. For example, in the roller-rib contacts in cylindrical and taper roller bearings and in the conjunctions occurring in high conformity gearing, a more reasonable approximation to the geometric configuration would be to consider the lubricant entraining vector to be parallel to the major axis of the contact ellipse. More generally in helical, spiral bevel and hypoid gearing the lubricant entrainment may be at an angle to the minor axis of the Hertzian ellipse. Part I of the present paper presents a study of the case where lubricant entrainment coincides with the line of the major axis of the contact ellipse, while part II addresses the more general case of an arbitrary flow direction. Seventy-two new solutions to the problem of the elastohydrodynamic lubrication of concentrated contacts with rolling along a principal axis have been computed. In part I of the paper thirty-three of these solutions are presented for lubricant entrainment in the direction of the major axis of the contact ellipse. These latter solutions therefore extend the range of geometrical configurations considered previously by B. J. Hamrock and D. Dowson, whose design predictions are widely used at present. New expressions for the calculation of minimum and central film thickness are presented, which enable the prediction with confidence of these quantities for the case when the lubricant entraining vector coincides with the major axis of the Hertzian contact ellipse. Comparison of the very extensive data presented in the paper with the limited information available from previous relevant studies is undertaken. In addition the major features distinguishing the new solutions for those previously computed are identified. It is expected that the results of the study will enable the lubricant film thickness to be predicted with increased confidence for a wide range of machine elements.


2013 ◽  
Vol 135 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Wang ◽  
C. H. Venner ◽  
A. A. Lubrecht

The effect of single-sided and double-sided harmonic surface waviness on the film thickness, pressure, and temperature oscillations in an elastohydrodynamically lubricated eccentric-tappet pair has been investigated in relation to the eccentricity and the waviness wavelength. The results show that, during one working cycle, the waviness causes significant fluctuations of the oil film, pressure, and temperature, as well as a reduction in minimum film thickness. Smaller wavelength causes more dramatic variations in oil film. The fluctuations of the pressure, film thickness, temperature, and traction coefficient caused by double-sided waviness are nearly the same compared with the single-sided waviness, but the variations are less intense.


Author(s):  
Marius Wolf ◽  
Sergey Solovyev ◽  
Fatemi Arshia

In this paper, analytical equations for the central film thickness in slender elliptic contacts are investigated. A comparison of state-of-the-art formulas with simulation results of a multilevel elastohydrodynamic lubrication solver is conducted and shows considerable deviation. Therefore, a new film thickness formula for slender elliptic contacts with variable ellipticity is derived. It incorporates asymptotic solutions, which results in validity over a large parameter domain. It captures the behaviour of increasing film thickness with increasing load for specific very slender contacts. The new formula proves to be significantly more accurate than current equations. Experimental studies and discussions on minimum film thickness will be presented in a subsequent publication.


1972 ◽  
Vol 94 (4) ◽  
pp. 324-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. M. Rodkiewicz ◽  
V. Srinivasan

A solution to the elastohydrodynamic lubrication problem for the case of two rolling cylinders, at different speeds, is presented. The lubricant is assumed compressible throughout the region. The fourth-order Runge-Kutta method for the lubricant and an improved quadrature formula for the elastic calculations are used. Pressure and film-thickness profiles are presented for different rolling velocities. There is a good agreement with the experimental film thickness data, available in literature.


Author(s):  
I. A. Gibson ◽  
C. J. Hooke ◽  
J. P. O'Donoghue

This report gives details of a theoretical analysis of the lubrication of ‘O’ ring seals. Under dry contact conditions the pressure gradient at inlet to the contact zone is infinite, and an iterative solution has been developed to determine the inlet sweep of pressure under conditions of elastohydrodynamic lubrication. The exit film thickness and pressures have also been determined for conditions of variable outlet viscosity and pressure gradient. Typical results for an ‘O’ ring are given for a standard seal section.


Author(s):  
A. D. Chapkov ◽  
C. H. Venner ◽  
A. A. Lubrecht

The influence of surface roughness on the performance of bearings and gears operating under ElastoHydrodynamic Lubrication (EHL) conditions has become increasingly important over the last decade, as the average film thickness decreased due to various influences. Surface features can reduce the minimum film thickness and thus increase the wear. They can also increase the temperature and the pressure fluctuations, which directly affects the component life. In order to describe the roughness geometry inside an EHL contact, the amplitude reduction of harmonic waviness has been studied over the last ten years. This theory currently allows a quantitative prediction of the waviness amplitude and includes the influence of wavelength and contact operating conditions. However, the model assumes a Newtonian behaviour of the lubricant. The current paper makes a first contribution to the extension of the roughness amplitude reduction for EHL point contacts including non-Newtonian effects.


Author(s):  
Duohuan Wu ◽  
Jing Wang ◽  
Peiran Yang ◽  
Ton Lubrecht

In this study, the effect of oil starvation on isothermal elastohydrodynamic lubrication of an impact motion is explored with the aid of numerical techniques. During the impact process, on comparison with the fully lubricated results, the pressure and film thickness are much lower and the entrapped film shape does not happen. The rebound is delayed by the oil starvation assumption. During the rebound process, a periphery entrapment is seen in the starved film thickness distribution. Under the starved condition, the maximum pressure gradient is higher. The central film thickness and minimum film thickness exhibit different variations compared with the results by fully flooded assumption.


2002 ◽  
Vol 125 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiaxin Zhao ◽  
Farshid Sadeghi

In this paper, an isothermal study of the shut down process of elastohydrodynamic lubrication under a constant load is performed. The surface mean velocity is decreased linearly from the initial steady state value to zero. The details of the pressure and film thickness distributions in the contact area are discussed for the two stages of shut down process, namely the deceleration stage and the subsequent pure squeeze motion stage with zero entraining velocity. The nature of the balance between the pressure, the wedge and the squeeze terms in Reynolds equation enables an analytical prediction of the film thickness change on the symmetry line of the contact in the deceleration period, provided that the steady state central film thickness relationship with velocity is known. The results indicate that for a fixed deceleration rate, if the initial steady state surface mean velocity is large enough, the transient pressure and film thickness distributions in the deceleration period solely depend on the transient velocity. The pressure and film thickness at the end of the deceleration period are then the same and do not depend on the initial steady state velocity. From the same initial steady state velocity, larger deceleration rates provide higher central pressure increase, but also preserve a higher film thickness in the contact area at the end of the deceleration period. Later in the second stage when the axisymmetric pressure and film thickness patterns typical of pure squeeze motion form, the pressure distribution in the contact area resembles a Hertzian contact pressure profile with a higher maximum Hertzian pressure and a smaller Hertzian half contact width. As a result, the film thickness is close to a parabolic distribution in the contact area. The volume of the lubricant trapped in the contact area is then estimated using this parabolic film thickness profile.


2000 ◽  
Vol 122 (4) ◽  
pp. 711-720 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young S. Kang ◽  
Farshid Sadeghi ◽  
Xiaolan Ai

A model was developed to study the effects of a rigid debris on elastohydrodynamic lubrication of rolling/sliding contacts. In order to achieve the objectives the time dependent Reynolds equation was modified to include the effects of an ellipsoidal shaped debris. The modified time dependent Reynolds and elasticity equations were simultaneously solved to determine the pressure and film thickness in EHL contacts. The debris force balance equation was solved to determine the debris velocity. The model was then used to obtain results for a variety of loads, speeds, and debris sizes. The results indicate that the debris has a significant effect on the pressure distribution and causes a dent on the rolling/sliding bounding surfaces. Depending on the size and location of the debris the pressure generated within the contact can be high enough to plastically deform the bounding surfaces. Debris smaller than the minimum film thickness do not enter the contact and only large and more spherical debris move toward the contact. [S0742-4787(11)00501-7]


Author(s):  
C J Hooke

The elastohydrodynamic lubrication of point contacts is examined and results for the minimum film thickness are presented for a wide range of radius ratios and operating conditions. The results are compared with the predictions of the appropriate regime formulae. Although these formulae give a reasonable estimate of the contact's behaviour, the actual clearances are often substantially different, particularly close to the regime boundaries. Interpolation equations for seven values of radius ratio are given and these should be sufficient to allow the minimum clearance to be estimated for most isoviscous point contacts.


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