Escolar Documentos
Profissional Documentos
Cultura Documentos
Doctorate Thesis
Petra Brajdic-Mitidieri
November, 2005
Abstract
used. This equation is deduced from the Navier-Stokes equations under certain as-
sumptions. In most cases, it can accurately predict the characteristics of the flow in
the lubricant film. However, if one wants to look at the region further away from the
narrow gap or if the surface roughnesses are of order of magnitude of the film thickness,
the Reynolds Equation may no longer be appropriate, and the need for using the full
flow of lubricant in the two regions of the bearing; the contact region and the region far
from the contact. It is concluded that in order to accurately model the entire domain,
tationally model the flow of a lubricant in simple converging bearings, for which the
Finally, the cavitation model is applied to the complex geometry of a pocketed pad
bearing, and a reduction in the friction coefficient is noted due to the pocket.
2
3
Acknowledgements
I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisors, Prof. H.A. Spikes, Prof. A.D.
Gosman and Prof. E. Ioannides for their continuous guidance and support during this
study.
I would also like to thank the past and present members of the Tribology and
Thermofluids Sections for their cooperation and support and for creating a pleasant
The text of this Thesis has benefited from valuable comments from Dr. H. Jasak
I would also like to thank Mrs. Chrissy Stevens for the help with many adminis-
ter Mara and my parents, Krunoslava and Mladen, for their enormous patience and
support.
1 Introduction 17
1.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
brication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
4
Contents 5
2.6 Closure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
3.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
3.7 Closure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
4.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
4.5 Closure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
5.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87
6.5.1 3D Linear Wedge with One Pocket Covering 25% of Total Area 124
6.5.2 3D Linear Wedge with Two Pockets Covering 25% of Total Area 127
4.4 Variation of maximum pressure and total load with the mesh refinement
4.5 Pressure distribution along the bottom wall of the linear wedge. . . . . 78
4.7 Velocity profiles on three different locations along the linear wedge. . . 79
4.9 Mesh and block structure in the computational domain of the step bear-
ing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
4.10 Pressure distribution along the bottom wall of the step bearing. . . . . 83
4.11 The x - component of the velocity vector at the inlet and the outlet of
8
List of Figures 9
5.3 Pressure distribution along the bottom wall of the roller bearing; . . . . 95
5.4 Density and pressure distributions along the bottom wall and bottom
half of the cylinder; (a) and (b) for rolling case, (c) and (d) for sliding
case . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
5.8 Velocity profiles for the half-cylinder case in the converging region lead-
5.9 Velocity profiles for the full cylinder case in the converging region leading
5.10 Density distribution and the velocity profile at the reformation point at
x = 40e-5 m. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
5.11 Mesh structure in the computational domain of the cylinder on the flat
geometry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
6.3 Pressure and shear stress distribution along the bottom wall of the bear-
6.5 Velocity distribution at the beginning, middle and the end of the pocket. 113
6.6 Pressure and velocity distributions at: (a) the inlet of the pocket, (b)
6.7 Pressure distribution along the bottom wall for bearings with varying
6.8 Friction coefficient ratio µh3 /µ0 for different positions of the pocket. . . 115
6.9 Pressure distribution at the bottom wall of the bearing for varying con-
6.10 Density distribution at the beginning of the pocket for K = 0.001. . . 119
6.11 Rate of convergence of solution for density in the pocket inlet region. . 120
6.12 Pressure distribution at the beginning and the end of the pocket for
K = 0.001. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
6.14 Pressure distribution for the cases with four pockets covering 25% of
6.16 Pressure distribution across the bottom wall for the case with B1 = 5 mm.
126
6.19 Pressure distribution across the bottom wall for the case with two pock-
5.2 Number of points in the x− and the z− direction for each block. . . . . 103
6.6 Cases of linear wedge with four pockets covering 25% of total area. . . 123
6.7 Cases of linear wedge with eight pockets covering 50% of total area. . . 124
6.9 Cases of 3D linear wedge with two pockets covering 25% of total area. . 128
11
Nomenclature
Latin Characters
aP – central coefficient
B – bearing width
Co – Courant number
E – exact error
g – body force
I – unit tensor
K – convergence ratio
12
Nomenclature 13
L – bearing length
p – pressure
Re – Reynolds number
Sφ – source term
t – time
U – velocity vector
V – volume
x – position vector
Greek Characters
Γφ – diffusivity
η – dynamic viscosity
ν – kinematic viscosity
µ – friction coefficient
ρ – density
σ – stress tensor
τ – shear stress
Φ – exact solution
Superscripts
q – mean
Nomenclature 15
Subscripts
q0 – characteristic value
q∗ – dimensionless value
Abbreviations
CG – Conjugate Gradient
CV – Control Volume
FD – Finite Differencing
FV – Finite Volume
HL – Hydrodynamic Lubrication
NS – Navier-Stokes
RE – Reynolds Equation
UD – Upwind Differencing
16
Chapter 1
Introduction
1.1 Background
The overall objective of this study is to develop and apply an efficient, CFD–based
simulation of hydrodynamic lubricated contact and apply this to study the performance
of pocketed bearings. Once developed, the numerical model will also be highly suited to
will give a good starting point for further numerical modelling of elastohydrodynamic
contacts.
Whenever there are two surfaces in rubbing contact, there is a friction between them.
This friction is associated with energy dissipation and often mechanical damage to the
of reducing friction is to separate two surfaces with a liquid lubricant. The lubricant
film should satisfy two requirements. Firstly, it should have a low shear strength to
obtain a low friction. Secondly, it should be strong enough to carry the entire load in
the direction perpendicular to the surfaces, to prevent direct contact between surfaces.
There are two main types of fluid film lubrication: hydrodynamic lubrication (HL)
form a shallow, converging wedge, so that, as their relative motion causes lubricant
entrainment into the contact, the lubricant becomes pressurised and so able to sup-
17
Chapter 1. Introduction 18
port load. The film thickness depends on the surface shapes, their relative speeds, and
the properties of the lubricant. Generally, film thickness is of the order of microme-
ters, supporting applied pressure of the order of Mega Pascals. This pressure is not
high enough to significantly deform the rubbing surfaces nor to increase the lubricant
viscosity.
The existence of a pressurised lubricant film was first noted by Tower [64]. In re-
sponse to his work, Reynolds [55], in 1886, developed a theory to explain fluid film
formation. He simplified the Navier-Stokes (NS) equations, assuming small film thick-
ness relative to the contact length, non-varying pressure across the film thickness, and
the dominance of certain viscous terms. The equation obtained relates fluid pressure
to the rate of gap convergence, surface velocities and lubricant viscosity. It is referred
There were two other important fundamental equations derived around that time.
In 1881, Hertz [37] published his study of the contact between two spherical bodies, to
show how the surfaces deform due to high, local pressure. In 1892, Barus [7] determined
Reynolds equation rapidly became a useful tool in bearing analysis and design.
However, when in 1916, Martin [50] and Grümbel [32] tried to apply Reynolds equation
to the lubrication of gear teeth, the film thickness they predicted was far too small, in
comparison to the surface roughness, to explain the long term successful operation of
gears. The difference between this problem and the previous ones, was that, in gears,
When the contact between the surfaces is a line or a point (non conformal contact),
the load is concentrated over a small contact area, and thus generates much higher
pressure of the order of Giga Pascals. Such a high pressure has two beneficial effects
Chapter 1. Introduction 19
creating a locally conforming contact, and it greatly increases the viscosity of the
lubricant in contact.
It took another 30 years until the work of Ertel [21] and Grubin and Vinogradova
[31] combined Reynolds equation with the two effects that Hertz and Barus determined;
the elastic deformation and viscosity increase due to the high pressure, to provide an
Since EHL comprised of three key equations: Reynolds equation, elastic deforma-
tion, and viscosity dependence on pressure, the problem became much more compli-
cated to solve than HL problem, and the role of a digital computer and numerical
Reynolds equation is a second order differential equation and thus not amenable to
analytical solution. This means that, from the time of Reynolds through to the 1940s,
almost all solutions of HL were based on the analytical solution of simplified forms of
RE, notably approximations in which pressure variation in one direction was assumed
to be zero.
In 1949, Cameron and Wood [11], and Sassenfeld and Walther [60], produced the
In recent times, most numerical work in HL has involved the use of Reynolds equa-
tion and the finite difference method, although recently, as discussed in the next section,
The first numerical solution of EHL was obtained in 1951 by Petrusevich [54], and
predicted a strange singularity in the pressure distribution: the ’pressure spike’. In the
1960s, the foundation of modern numerical solutions of the EHL problem was laid by
Dowson and Higginson [19], who solved the line contact problem for a variety of oper-
ating conditions, and providing a film thickness equation based on these calculations.
In 1976, advances in computer technology allowed Hamrock and Dowson [35] to solve
the circular contact problem. The numerical method was a direct approach based upon
the simple point Gauss–Seidel scheme, and even though it had a slow convergence, pre-
dictions of central and minimum film thicknesses were obtained for a comprehensive
set of conditions The method was, however, inadequate for pressures higher than about
0.5 GPa. In 1981, Evans and Snidle [24] [25], successfully extended the inverse method
to the point contact problem and solutions up to a maximum Hertzian pressure of 1.5
still very slow and also computation of the elastic deformations was a very time-
consuming process. In 1977, Brandt [9] introduced the multigrid technique as a way to
[48] [49] were the first to develop line and point contact solutions using this technique.
Great progress has been made in recent years to understand the numerical problems.
Venner [68] has been a main contributor to these developments. He indicated the two
was to be achieved. Numerical problems are all dependent on the changes in the nature
of Reynolds equation throughout the computational domain and on the manner used to
treat the Reynolds and elasticity equations with a high number of discretization points.
In the high–pressure region the problem behaves as an integral problem and the elastic
when relaxing Reynolds equation for pressure. Venner showed that this effect can be
only in point contact, comes from the loss of coupling of the Reynolds equation in the
direction transverse to the flow in the high–pressure region. This problem requires the
use of line relaxation. However, to address both the problem of the accumulation of
change and the loss of coupling, the development of a distributive line relaxation is
required.
deflection, given by Evans and Hughes [26]. The effect of the pressure distribution in
Even though major progress has been made in recent decades in numerical methods
in lubrication, the majority of work is still based on Reynolds equation and the finite
difference method.
In this Section an overview of published CFD work in fluid film lubrication is presented
in chronological order, excluding the work relating to the cavitation and to the recessed
Solution using CFD differs from finite difference work in the discretization method.
In the finite difference method, discrete approximations for the differential operators of
the governing differential equation are used. For the HL and EHL problem, this results
Chapter 1. Introduction 22
plication of this discrete equation to a discretized solution domain does not necessarily
ensure that mass conservation exists. This has been exhibited in solutions by Hamrock
CFD work started in the late 1970s with the application of the control volume
method as the discretisation tool. This technique was described by Patankar [52] in
1980. The major advantage that is offered by this technique is that the fundamental
conservation from which the governing differential equations are derived is maintained
in the discrete solution, regardless of the level of solution domain discretisation. This
provides the capability of more accurately modelling the phenomena being examined.
In 1985, Blahey [8] used the control volume method to examine thermal effects
in elliptical EHL contact and presented a method for the numerical solution of this
problem. He solved the set of simplified NS equations, using his own code. The
solution including thermal effects significantly lowered the height of the pressure spike
compared to the isothermal case. Thermal effects also reduced the fluid film thickness
In 1992, Chang [14] analyzed the elliptical thermal EHL contact by using a control
volume method similar to Blahey’s. A novelty in his work is that he included a study
In 1997, Zhang and Rodkiewicz [74] used a CFD technique to examine the effects of
changing the height and the length of the fore-region (the groove) in hydrodynamically–
lubricated thrust bearings. They found that fluid inertia needs to be taken into consid-
eration when modelling the fluid behaviour in the fore-region. However, by setting the
groove depth equal to zero, the results showed negligible fluid inertia (as assumed by
Reynolds equation). It was also found that the depth of the groove had little influence
on the bearing performance, but the length of this region had a profound influence.
In 1998, Chen and Hahn [15] studied the suitability of computational fluid dynamics
Chapter 1. Introduction 23
for solving steady state hydrodynamic lubrication problems. The geometries studied
were slider bearings, step pad bearings, journal bearings and squeeze-film dampers.
The relevance of inertia and viscous terms neglected in the derivation of the Reynolds
number were investigated, and it was shown that the generally neglected viscous terms
In 2000, Schäfer et al. [61] used CFD to show that the application of Reynolds
equation is permissible for the case of pure rolling in EHL line contact, but not when
considering partial or pure sliding. However, they used a Newtonian fluid model and
bricated, pivoted thrust bearing based on CFD. The bearing could tilt both radially
oil film and in the pad, as well as two–dimensional temperature variation in the run-
ner. Viscosity and density were treated as functions of both temperature and pressure.
Fairly good agreement between theoretical and experimental investigations was found.
In 2001, Almqvist and Larsson [1] investigated the use of the NS equations in the
solution of thermal, smooth line contact EHL problems. Cavitation was simulated by
modifying the density, using the Dowson-Higginson expression, see Hamrock [34], when
the pressure is above a specified cavitation pressure pcav . When the pressure fell below
pcav , a second order polynomial was used to interpolate the density down to zero. They
In 2003, van Odyck and Venner [67] used the Stokes equation (NS equation minus
inertia terms) to solve the EHL problem. In order to handle non-rectangular boundaries
They also discussed the difference between the two-phase (TP) cavitation model and
the Reynolds (RR) cavitation model. With the TP model it is possible to simulate a
Chapter 1. Introduction 24
cavitated region inside the contact, which is not possible with the RR model. In the
Table 1.1 summarises the main work using CFD in fluid film lubrication to date.
Table 1.1: Overview of numerical work using CFD in fluid film lubrication.
The use of CFD/NS to study lubrication problems has a number of significant ad-
to simulate a full roller bearing including the far inlet, near inlet, contact and outlet
regions. This would not be possible using RE since the far inlet region involves high
Reynolds number. In principle, the fluid flow in a whole engineering component might
Chapter 1. Introduction 25
be simulated.
Another potential advantage is in rough surface lubricated contact, where the lu-
bricant film thickness is comparable to the scale of the roughness. In such conditions,
some of the assumptions which lead to RE may no longer hold, e.g. neglect of inertia.
There are also some bearing geometries to which RE cannot be applied, e.g. rapidly
diverging regions within a pad bearing, where recirculation may take place. Other
systems which CFD can model relevant to film fluid lubricant include two phase flow
The overall objective of this research is to develop and validate a CFD–based solu-
tion to the HL and EHL problems. The specific aims are as follows:
• To develop a CFD methodology for smooth and rough surface EHL simulation
• To use this to test the validity of the assumption of constant pressure across the
2.1 Introduction
Since the analysis of the fluid flow will be done at macroscopic length scales (> 10−9 m),
the molecular structure of matter and individual molecular motions will be ignored.
The behaviour of the fluid will be described in terms of macroscopic properties, e.g.
velocity, pressure and density, and their space and time derivatives. All the cases in
this study will be regarded as isothermal and therefore the energy equation will not be
included.
Order of magnitude analysis will be carried out on the governing equations with
variables are introduced. By doing this, it will be possible to assess the relative sig-
nificance of the various terms in each equation for different regions in the domain and
geometries of interest.
In the contact region, where the aspect ratio (ratio between characteristic length and
characteristic height) is large (≈ 103 ), the Reynolds number is very small (Re ≈ 10−3 )
and certain terms from the NS equation may be neglected. The full set of governing
equations then reduces to the Reynolds Equation. However, this is valid only in the
If one wants to expand the domain further outwards into the inlet and outlet regions,
26
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 27
the convective terms in NS equations cease being negligible. In this Chapter, order of
magnitude analysis is conducted both for the contact and far regions, demonstrating
All the equations in this Chapter will be presented both in vector notation and in the
expanded form in the Cartesian (x, y and z) coordinates. The vector notation will
be used in Chapter 3 as a suitable form in which we will describe the Finite Volume
Method. The expanded form of the equations in the Cartesian coordinates will be used
The governing equations of fluid flow represent mathematical statements of the con-
∂ρ
+ ∇ · (ρU) = 0, (2.1)
∂t
or,
∂ρ ∂ρu ∂ρv ∂ρw
+ + + = 0. (2.2)
∂t ∂x ∂y ∂z
∂ρU
+ ∇ · (ρUU) = ρg + ∇·σ, (2.3)
∂t
∂ρ(x × U)
+ ∇ · [ρ(x × U)U] = ρ(x × g) + x × (∇·σ). (2.4)
∂t
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 28
where
→ ρ is density,
→ σij is the viscous stress component which acts in the j-direction on a surface
The conservation laws expressed by Eqs. (2.1 to 2.7) are valid for any isothermal
continuum. The number of unknown quantities is, however, larger than the number of
question. In the case of Newtonian fluids under isothermal conditions, the following
[12]) is used:
ficient.
The constitutive relations given above, together with the governing equations in Sec-
tion 2.2.1 for a continuum create a closed system of partial differential equations for
Newtonian fluids:
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 30
∂ρ
+ ∇ · (ρU) = 0, (2.12)
∂t
∂ρu ∂p
x-direction + div(ρuu) = div(η grad u) − + SM x (2.15)
∂t ∂x
∂ρv ∂p
y-direction + div(ρuvu) = div(η grad v) − + SM y (2.16)
∂t ∂y
∂ρw ∂p
z-direction + div(ρwu) = div(η grad w) − +S (2.17)
| ∂t
{z } | {z } | {z } | ∂z {z M}z
convective diffusive
temporal source
In Eqs. (2.15 to 2.17), the Navier-Stokes equation is shown with four terms: the
temporal derivative, convective, diffusive and source terms. The temporal term governs
the rate of change of the property (in this case, velocity component) in time. The
convective term represents the rate of property change due to the flow through the
control volume. Diffusive term governs diffusion effects caused by the gradients (e.g.
shear stress) in the field. All the terms that cannot be grouped as convection or
used in numerical analysis. Their advantage is that the results have generality and the
script ∗, are shown as a ratio between the dimensional variable and their characteristic
p
Pressure p∗ = ,
p0
ρ
Density ρ∗ = ,
ρ0
x
x - Cartesian coordinate x∗ = ,
x0
y
y - Cartesian coordinate y∗ = ,
y0
z
z - Cartesian coordinate z∗ = ,
z0
u
velocity component in x-direction u∗ = , (2.18)
u0
v
velocity component in y-direction v∗ = ,
v0
w
velocity component in z-direction u∗ = ,
w0
η
Dynamic viscosity η∗ = ,
η0
α
Pressure - viscosity coefficient α∗ = .
α0
where the aspect ratio (i.e. ratio between the length and the height) in contact zones
is of order of magnitude 103 . Figure 2.1 shows a schematic picture of a contact divided
(a) outside a contact in the far zone, with aspect ratio ≈1;
z
y (a) (a)
(b)
x
The behaviour of lubricant in the two regions is significantly different, partly be-
cause of higher pressures in the contact zone, which may in turn cause elastic defor-
mation of the surfaces and changes in viscosity. The Reynolds number also varies by
several orders of magnitude between the contact zone and the far region. Table 2.1
contains characteristic values of the variables inside and outside of the contact.
Table 2.1: Characteristic values inside and outside the contact in a bearing.
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 33
In order to determine which terms in the equations are dominant, dimensional variables
variable (see Eqn. 2.18) and the characteristic value. Different regions of the bearing
Momentum equation. The Navier-Stokes equations, Eqs. (2.15 to 2.17), were writ-
ten in simplified form where the smaller viscosity terms were included in the source
term, SM i . However, in this Section the order of magnitude analysis will be conducted
on the equations where all the viscous terms are shown. The x-component of the
∂ρ∗ u∗
+
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ u∗ ) v0 x0 ∂(ρ∗ v∗ u∗ ) w0 x0 ∂(ρ∗ w∗ u∗ )
+ + −
∂x∗ u0 y 0 ∂y∗ u0 z 0 ∂z∗
1 ∂ 2 u∗
2 exp(αp) 2 −
Rex ∂x∗
2
1 ∂ x0 ∂u∗ v0 x0 ∂v∗
exp(αp) + −
Rex ∂y∗ y02 ∂y∗ u0 y0 ∂x∗
2
1 ∂ x0 ∂u∗ w0 x0 ∂w∗
exp(αp) + + (2.19)
Rex ∂z∗ z02 ∂z∗ u0 z0 ∂x∗
2 1 ∂ ∂u∗ v0 x0 ∂v∗ w0 x0 ∂w∗ p0 ∂p∗
exp(αp) + + = −
3 Rex ∂x∗ ∂x∗ u0 y0 ∂y∗ u0 z0 ∂z∗ ρ0 u20 ∂x∗
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 34
Characteristic values for the region of interest are now substituted in Eqs. (2.19 to
2.24), to identify the dominant terms for each equation. Printed in bold are the relative
The x-component of the momentum in the outside the contact region is:
∂ρ∗ u∗
1 +
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ u∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ v∗ u∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ w∗ u∗ )
1 +1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ 2 u∗
10−3 exp(αp) 2 −
∂x∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 −
∂y∗ ∂y∗ ∂x∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂w∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 + (2.25)
∂z∗ ∂z∗ ∂x∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗ ∂w∗ ∂p∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 +1 = −102 ,
∂x∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗ ∂x∗
∂ρ∗ v∗
1 +
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ v∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ v∗ v∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ w∗ v∗ )
1 +1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ ∂v∗ ∂u∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗
∂ 2 v∗
10−3 exp (αp) −
∂y∗2
∂ ∂v∗ ∂w∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 + (2.26)
∂z∗ ∂z∗ ∂y∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗ ∂w∗ ∂p∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 +1 = −102 .
∂y∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗ ∂y∗
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 36
∂ρ∗ w∗
1 +
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ w∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ v∗ w∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ w∗ w∗ )
1 +1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ ∂w∗ ∂u∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂x∗ ∂z∗
∂ ∂w∗ ∂v∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 −
∂y∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ 2 w∗
10−3 exp (αp) + (2.27)
∂z∗2
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗ ∂w∗ ∂p∗
10 exp (αp)
−3
1 +1 +1 = −102 .
∂z∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗ ∂z∗
The continuity equation with the characteristic values for the outside of the contact is:
ρ∗ (p) = 1. (2.30)
Since the pressures outside the contact region are of order of p = 105 Pa, non-
dimensional viscosity and density are effectively constant. From Eqs. (2.25 to 2.27),
it can be seen that the diffusive terms have an order of magnitude three times smaller
than the convective terms in the momentum equations outside the contact. This is
The x-component of the momentum in the inside the contact region is:
∂ρ∗ u∗
1 +
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ u∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ v∗ u∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ w∗ u∗ )
1 +1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ 2 u∗
10−2 exp (αp) −
∂x2∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗
10 exp (αp)
−2
1 +1 −
∂y∗ ∂y∗ ∂x∗
∂ 8 ∂u∗ ∂w∗
10 exp (αp)
−2
10 +1 + (2.31)
∂z∗ ∂z∗ ∂x∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗ ∂w∗ ∂p∗
10 exp (αp)
−2
1 +1 +1 = −105 .
∂x∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗ ∂x∗
According to the dominant terms from Eqn. (2.31), the dimensional form of the x-
∂2u ∂p
η 2
=− . (2.32)
∂z ∂x
Similarly, the y-component of the momentum, expressed with the characteristic values
∂ρ∗ v∗
1 +
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ v∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ v∗ v∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ w∗ v∗ )
1 + +1 −
∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ ∂v ∗ ∂u∗
10 exp (αp)
−2
1 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗
∂ 2 v∗
10−2 exp (αp) −
∂y∗2
∂ 8 ∂v∗ ∂w∗
10 exp (αp)
−2
10 +1 + (2.33)
∂z∗ ∂z∗ ∂y∗
∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗ ∂w∗ ∂p∗
10 exp (αp)
−2
1 +1 +1 = −105 .
∂y∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗ ∂y∗
According to the dominant terms from Eqn. (2.33), the dimensional form of the y-
∂ρ∗ w∗
1 +
∂t∗
∂(ρ∗ u∗ w∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ v∗ w∗ ) ∂(ρ∗ w∗ w∗ )
1 +1 + −
∂x∗ ∂y ∂z∗
∗
2 ∂ −8 ∂w∗ ∂u∗
10 exp (αp) 10 +1 −
∂x∗ ∂x∗ ∂z∗
2 ∂ −8 ∂w∗ ∂v∗
10 exp (αp) 10 +1 −
∂y∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗
∂ 2 w∗
102 exp (αp) + (2.35)
∂z∗2
2 ∂ ∂u∗ ∂v∗ ∂w∗ ∂p∗
10 exp (αp) 1 +1 +1 = −1013 .
∂z∗ ∂x∗ ∂y∗ ∂z∗ ∂z∗
In Eqn. (2.35), the magnitude of the scaling factor of the r.h.s. is 11 orders of magni-
tude greater than that of the l.h.s. In order for the l.h.s. to be equal to the r.h.s., the
and density dependence on pressure, according to Eqn. (2.24), assumes the following
values:
1.03 for p = 0.1 GPa,
ρ= (2.39)
1.2 for p = 1 GPa.
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 39
In the contact, the pressure can rise from the order of magnitude of 107 Pa to 109 Pa.
That implies that the non-dimensional viscosity, Eqn. (2.38), can assume values from
1 to 104 . One has to bear in mind that the Barus law for viscosity dependence on
pressure, Eqn. (2.9), generally becomes inaccurate above 0.5 GPa and even more so if
From Eqs. (2.31 to 2.35), it can be seen that inside the contact, the diffusive terms
dominate in the momentum equations. This is expected, considering that the Reynolds
number is Re ≈ 10−2 . Due to the very high local pressure in the contact, fluid viscosity
(2.38) and density (2.39) are no longer constant, but dependent on pressure.
2.6 Closure
In this Chapter the governing equations for the flow of a lubricant in a bearing were
given. These equations were then non-dimensionalised and order of magnitude analysis
was carried out for the two regions of the bearing: the contact region and the region
The order of magnitude analysis has shown that the Reynolds number based on film
height varies over the full computational domain from 10−2 to 103 . Because of such a
big variation, different terms dominate the governing equations for the fluid flow in the
two regions. In the region outside the contact, convective terms are dominant, whereas
in the contact region diffusive terms are greater. This is one of the reasons why it is
necessary to use the full set of Navier-Stokes equations when solving the fluid flow over
In the high-pressure, contact region, the aspect ratio between film thickness, z0 ,
and the characteristic length, x0 is of the order of 10−4 . In that region, if the surfaces
are so smooth that the minimum film thickness in the problem is large compared
to the surface roughness, Navier-Stokes equations simplify to Eqs. (2.32, 2.34 and
Chapter 2. Governing Equations of Fluid Flow 40
2.36), from which the Reynolds equation is obtained (see Chapter 4). However, if the
film thickness, the local aspect ratio becomes much higher and certain viscous terms
still Rez 1 which means that the convective terms remain negligible. The Reynolds
equation, therefore, cannot be used for calculation of the flow parameters in the contact
region with surface roughnesses, but Navier-Stokes equations can be reduced to Stokes
3.1 Introduction
In Chapter 2, fluid flow for situations relevant for lubrication, was described by a set
One has to bear in mind that the numerical results are always approximate. The ac-
curacy of numerical solution depends on the quality of discretisations used. The errors
arise from the fact that differential equations describing the flow may contain approx-
imations and idealisations; from the approximations in the discretisation method, and
from convergence criteria, which may stop the iterations before the exact solution of
Mathematical Model. It is the set of equations and boundary conditions that de-
scribe a particular problem. As mentioned before, this model may include simplifica-
tions and idealisations of the exact conservation laws. The solution method is usually
41
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 42
ical, etc.) may be used depending on the form of the governing equations and on the
geometry of the problem. In this work, the coordinate system employed will be Carte-
sian.
for the mathematical model chosen. The Finite Volume Method (FVM) will be used
in this work, which consists of the discretisation of the solution domain and equation
• Spatial Discretisation. Since the Finite Volume Method is used in the work,
the solution domain has to be divided into a finite number of subdomains, called
control volumes (CV). Each control volume can be of any polyhedral shape with
variable number of neighbours, but not overlapping with them. The grid used in
this study will be a block-structured grid, with a two level subdivision of solution
domain. The domain is divided coarsely into large segments, or blocks, which are
then subdivided into control volumes. By doing that, one can easily introduce a
one must select the methods of approximating surface and volume integrals. Some
of them will be briefly mentioned in the following Sections. The choice of ap-
proximation greatly influences the accuracy of the numerical solution. The more
• Convergence Criteria. The convergence criteria must be set for the iterative
method. In the solution algorithms that will be used in this work, there are
two levels of iteration: inner iterations, within which the linear equations are
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 43
solved, and outer iterations, that deal with the non-linearity and coupling of the
Solution Method Methods of solving the system of algebraic equations can be di-
2. Solution methods for handling multiple coupled equations (not in a single linear
system).
The problems which are encountered in CFD work use the latter methods. The two of
In order for the solution method (in this work, FVM) to be acceptable, it must possess
Consistency. For a method to be consistent, the truncation error, i.e. the difference
between the discretised equation and the exact one, must become zero when the mesh
spacing tends to zero. Truncation error is usually proportional to a power of the grid
spacing ∆x and/or the time step ∆t. The method is called an n-th order approximation
if the leading term in the truncation error is proportional to (∆x)n . In this work, we
One has to bear in mind that even if the approximations are consistent, it does not
necessarily mean that the solution will become exact as ∆x → 0. For this to happen,
Stability. A numerical solution method is stable if it does not increase the errors
that appear in the numerical solution process. For temporal problems, the stable
method will produce a bounded solution whenever the solution of the exact equation is
bounded. For iterative methods, a stable method is one that does not diverge. Stability
can often be difficult to investigate. However, it is known that many solution schemes
require the time step to be smaller than a certain limit or that under-relaxation must
be used.
equations tends to the exact solution of the differential equation as the grid spacing
tends to zero. Convergence is usually checked using numerical experiments, i.e. re-
peating the calculation on a series of successively refined grids. If the method is stable
and if all approximations used in the discretisation process are consistent, the solution
Conservation. The numerical method, both on a local and a global basis, should
respect the conservation laws that differential equations represent. The finite volume
method used in this work is conservative both for each individual control volume and
Boundedness. Numerical solutions should lie within proper bounds. That means
that physically non-negative quantities (e.g. density) must always be positive; other
Realisability. In this work, we will have to solve the system in which cavitation
occurs. That problem is too complex to be treated directly, and the method designed
must instead guarantee physically realistic solution. This, itself, is not a numerical
issue but models that are not realisable may result in unphysical solutions or cause
Accuracy. Numerical solutions of fluid flow are only approximate solutions. They
always include three kinds of systematic errors (Ferziger and Perić [28]):
• Modeling errors, i.e. the difference between the actual flow and the exact solution
• Discretisation errors, i.e. the difference between the exact solution of the con-
servation equations and the exact solution of the algebraic system of discretised
equations;
• Iteration errors, i.e. the difference between the iterative and exact solutions of
It is important to be aware of these errors and to try to distinguish one from another.
For example, modeling errors are negligible in case of laminar flows, since the
tating flows, the modeling error may be very large, making the exact solution of the
numerical model qualitatively wrong. This type of error is also introduced by simplify-
ing the geometry of the solution domain, simplifying boundary conditions, etc. These
errors are not known a priori; they can only be evaluated by comparing numerical so-
lutions in which the discretisation and convergence errors are negligible with accurate
experimental results.
In the Finite Volume Method, discretisation of the solution domain produces a number
of discrete points on which the governing equations are solved. It is done by dividing
the domain into a finite number of control volumes (CV), and the conservation equa-
tions are applied to each CV. Control volumes do not overlap and completely fill the
computational domain.
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 46
Even though the control volume can be a general polyhedron, in the present study
all the CV-s are of a hexahedral shape, as shown in Figure 3.1. The computational point
P is the centroid of the control volume at which all the variable values are calculated.
nf
N
d f
Sf
f
P
z
x
y
VP
Figure 3.1: Control volume
The control volume is bounded by a set of flat faces and each face is shared with
only one neighbouring CV. The face area vector nf is constructed for each face in such
a way that it points outwards from the ”owner” and towards the ”neighbour” cell, is
normal to the face and has the magnitude equal to the area of the face, Sf . For the
shaded face in Fig. 3.1, the owner and neighbour cell centres are marked with P and
N respectively. For simplicity, all the faces of the control volume will be marked with
f , which also represents the point in the middle of the face (see Fig. 3.1).
The finite volume method can accomodate any type of grid, making it suitable for
complex geometries. The mesh can be refined locally, with the computational points
In the previous Chapter the three components of the momentum equation were given
conservative form of all fluid flow equations (including also energy equation, etc.) can
be written as follows:
∂ρφ
+ ∇ · (ρUφ) − ∇ · (ρΓφ ∇φ) = Sφ (φ) . (3.1)
∂t
|{z} | {z } | {z } | {z }
convection diffusion source
temporal
In words
Eqn. (3.1) is called a transport equation for property φ. It is used as the starting
point for computational procedures in the FVM. By setting φ equal to 1, u, v and w (if
thermal effects are included, also T ) and selecting appropriate values for the diffusion
The FVM uses the integral form of Eqn. (3.1) as the starting point:
Z Z Z
∂
ρφ dV + ∇ · (ρUφ)dV − ∇ · (ρΓφ ∇φ)dV
∂t VP VP VP
Z
= Sφ (φ)dV (3.2)
VP
Volume integrals in the convective and diffusive terms are re-written as integrals
over the bounding surface of the CV by using the Gauss’ divergence theorem:
Z I
∇·a dV = dn · a, (3.3)
ZCV I∂V
∇φ dV = dn φ, (3.4)
CV ∂V
Z I
∇ a dV = dn a, (3.5)
CV ∂V
where ∂V is the closed surface bounding the volume V and dn represents an infinites-
Since the diffusion term includes the second derivative of φ in space, this is a second-
order equation. To ensure consistency, the order of the discretisation must be of equal
or higher order than the order of the equation that is being discretised.
If we assume that φ = φ(x, t) varies linearly in space and time around the point P ,
it can be written:
φP = φ(xP ), (3.8)
φt = φ(t). (3.9)
The discretisation in this study is therefore second-order accurate in space and time,
since the most dominant term of the truncation error in Taylor series is proportional
to (x − xP )2 , which for a 1-D situation is equal to the square of the size of the control
volume:
1
φ(x) = φP + (x − xP ) · (∇φ)P + (x − xP )2 · (∇∇φ)P + ..., (3.10)
|2 {z }
truncation error
The equivalent analysis shows that the truncation error in Eqn. (3.7) is proportional
= φ P VP , (3.11)
where VP is the volume of the cell, since the point P is the centroid of the control
volume:
Z
(x − xP ) dV = 0. (3.12)
VP
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 49
In order to obtain a discretised form of the Gauss’ theorem, Eqn. (3.3) can be
If we assume that |a| varies linearly in space, the face integral in Eqn. (3.13) can be
written as:
Z Z Z
dn · a = dn · af + dn(x − xf ) · (∇a)f
f f f
= n · af (3.14)
where af is the value of the variable a in the middle of the face f and n is the outward-
F = n·(ρU)f (3.17)
From Eqn. (3.16), it is clear that the approximation to the integral form of the con-
vection term requires the values of variables at locations other than computational
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 50
nodes (i.e. CV centres). These values will have to be expressed in terms of the nodal
values by interpolation. Numerous schemes are available, but in this study differencing
schemes using only the nearest neighbours of the control volume will be employed.
In order for the scheme to be valid, the boundedness of the discretised convection
term must be preserved, i.e. if φ initially varies between two bounds, the convection
term will never produce the values of φ that fall outside of the interval between those
values.
φN
φ
P φf
d
P f N
Assuming the linear variation of φ between P and N , as shown in Fig. 3.2, the face
φf = fx φP + (1 − fx )φN , (3.18)
fN
fx = (3.19)
PN
(CD). One of the major inadequacies of the CD scheme is its inability to identify flow
direction. The value of the property φ at the cell face is always influenced by both
φP and φN using this scheme. In a strongly convective flow from P to N , the above
method is unsuitable because the cell face should receive much stronger influence from
node N than from node P . That causes unphysical oscillations in the solution for
solution. A more thorough description of the CD scheme can be found in Ferziger and
Perić [28].
Boundedness can be secured with the Upwind Differencing (UD) scheme. This
scheme takes into account the flow direction when determining the value at a cell face;
the convected value of φ at a cell face is taken to be equal to the value at the upstream
node:
φf = φ P for F ≥ 0,
φf = (3.20)
φ =φ
f N for F < 0,
[52]), the accuracy is affected by implicitly introducing the numerical diffusion term.
This term violates the order of accuracy of the discretisation and can severely distort
the solution.
The diffusion term will be discretised using the assumption of linear variation of φ and
Eqn. (3.15):
Z X
∇ · (ρΓφ ∇φ)dV = n · (ρΓφ ∇φ)f
VP f
X
= (ρΓφ )f n · (∇φ)f . (3.21)
f
d
P f N
In case of the orthogonal mesh, vectors d and n in Fig. 3.3 are parallel and the
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 52
following stands:
φN − φ P
n · (∇φ)f = |n| . (3.22)
|d|
An alternative would be to calculated the cell-centred gradient for the two cells sharing
Although both of these methods are second-order accurate, Eqn. (3.24) uses more
computational time and its truncation error is four times larger than in the first method.
However, the first method described with Eqn. (3.22) cannot be used on non-orthogonal
In order to make use of the higher accuracy of Eqn. (3.22), the product n·(∇φ)f is
n = ∆ + k. (3.26)
Vector ∆ is chosen to be parallel to d, which allows for use of Eqn. (3.22) on the
orthogonal contribution, limiting the less accurate method only to the non-orthogonal
part. There are many ways in which n can be deconstructed. One of them, the over-
relaxed approach is shown in Figure 3.4, in which both orthogonal and non-orthogonal
contributions are increased. Different approaches are appropriate for different problems
(Jasak [42]), with the final form being the same for all of them:
φN − φ P
n · (∇φ)f = |∆| + k · (∇φ)f . (3.27)
|d|
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 53
n k
d
P f ∆ N
All terms in the transport equation, except diffusion, convection and temporal terms,
are included in the source term, Sφ (φ). Before discretising it, the FVM approximates
Sφ (φ) = Su + SP φ, (3.28)
where Su and SP can depend on φ. The volume integral of Eqn. (3.28) is written as:
Z
Sφ (φ)dV = Su VP + SP VP φP . (3.29)
VP
So far, in this Section, convection, diffusion and source terms have been discretised.
Using Eqs. (3.17, 3.27 and 3.29), and assuming that the control volumes do not change
in time, the integral form of transport equation, Eqn. (3.2) can be written as:
∂ X X
(ρP φP VP ) = − F φf + (ρΓφ )f n · (∇φ)f
∂t
f f
+ S u VP + S P VP φP (3.30)
For simplicity, the r.h.s. of the Eqn. (3.30) will be denoted by M (t):
∂
(ρP φP VP ) = M (t). (3.31)
∂t
Temporal discretisation of Eqn. (3.31) can be conducted in various ways, some of which
Euler Explicit Method In this method the face values of φ and ∆φ are determined
from the old-time field (superscript o). The linear part of the source term is also
evaluated using the old-time value. That is why the r.h.s. is denoted with M (to ):
The new value of φP can be calculated directly - it is not necessary to solve the system
of linear equations. The disadvantage of this method is the Courant number limit. The
than unity, the explicit system becomes unstable. This puts a severe limitation in
Euler Implicit Method In this method, the temporal discretisation is the same as
in the previous one, but the face-values are expressed in terms of the new time-level
This is still a first-order accurate method, but unlike the explicit, this method creates
X
aP φnP + aN φnN = RP . (3.35)
N
The coupling of the system is much stronger than in the explicit approach, and the
system is stable even if the Courant number limit is violated. Unlike the explicit
vious two methods, and the face-values are expressed as an average between new- and
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 55
old-time values:
ρnP φnP − ρoP φoP 1
VP = [M (to ) + M (tn )]. (3.36)
∆t 2
This method is second-order accurate in time and stable, but the boundedness of the
If M (t) in Eqn. (3.36) is substituted by the r.h.s. from Eqn. (3.30), the following
expression is obtained:
nf ·(∇φ)f , i.e. the value of the variable φ and its normal gradient on face f .
Previously in this Section, it was shown how to find those values for the internal
mesh faces. However, for the faces located on the boundary of the domain, those values
There are two basic types of boundary conditions; a Dirichlet boundary condition
sets the value of the variable at the boundary, while a Neumann boundary condition
sets the value of its normal gradient at the boundary. A control volume with face
connects the centroid P with the centre of the face b, while vector dn is parallel to
dn = (nb · db ) nb . (3.38)
It is further assumed that the value which is set at the boundary face is constant over
that entire face. The boundary conditions are implemented into discretised equations
dn db
b Sb
nb
respected when discretising convection and diffusion term at the boundary face.
φb − φ P
nb · (∇φ)b = Sb · (3.40)
|dn |
φb − φ P
(ρΓφ )b Sb (3.41)
|dn |
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 57
nb ·(∇φ)b = gb . (3.42)
Depending on which term this conditions is applied, that is done in the following
way:
φb = φP + |dn | gb , (3.43)
which means that the convection contribution at the boundary face will be
the following:
– Diffusion term. From Eqn. (3.42), it follows that the diffusion term at
(ρΓφ )b Sb gb . (3.45)
For incompressible flow, physical boundary conditions used in this study, are as follow-
ing:
• Inlet boundary. At the inlet boundary the velocity field has a fixed value, while
– The velocity distribution at the boundary is the same as in the row of cells
adjacent to the boundary. The pressure has again zero gradient condition.
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 58
This approach can become unstable if there is an inflow through the face
of pressure equation.
boundary should be fixed to zero. The components parallel to the boundary are
projected to the boundary face from the inside of the domain, i.e. it is treated
• No-slip at the walls. The velocity of the fluid on the wall is equal to the
velocity of the wall itself. Since the flux through the solid wall is zero, the
In Eqn. (3.37), φnf and nnf ·(∇φ)nf are dependent on the values of variable φ in the
contains all the other components of the transport equations which are not treated
explicitly. For each control volume there is one linear equation of the form of Eqn.
[A ] {φ} = {R }. (3.47)
The matrix [A ] contains coefficients aP on its diagonal, while above and below are
coefficents aN . Vector {φ} contains the values of φ for all the control volumes in the
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 59
mesh, while vector R represents the source term. The matrix [A ] is a sparse matrix in
This system of equations can be solved in many different ways which fall into two
categories: direct and iterative methods. Direct methods are suitable for small systems,
since the number of operations necessary to reach a solution is, at best, equal to the
number of the equations squared, thus making it too expensive for large systems.
In this study, iterative methods are used, which start with an initial guess and
improve it until solution tolerance criteria are met. Iterative methods are more eco-
nomical than direct ones. However, they require diagonal dominance of the matrix [A ]
to guarantee convergence. A matrix is diagonally equal if, in each row, the magnitude
X
|aP | = |aN |. (3.48)
N
In order to be diagonally dominant, the following must stand for at least one row of
the matrix:
X
|aP | > |aN |. (3.49)
N
The solver convergence is improved with the increase of diagonal dominance of the
system. Each component of the transport equation has the following influence on the
diagonal coefficient and the source term of the system, and therefore increases
diagonal dominance. From Eqn. (3.37), it follows that the discretisation of the
ρn VPn
temporal term contributes with ∆t
to the diagonal coefficient. Therefore, with
the decrease of the time step ∆t, diagonal dominance of the system is increased.
• Convection term. The convection term creates a diagonally equal matrix only
for the Upwind Differencing (UD) scheme. In case of the Central Differencing
scheme, the matrix does not guarantee boundedness. There are various methods
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 60
to improve the quality of the matrix for higher-order differencing schemes. One
any differencing scheme is treated as an upgrade of UD. Here, the part of the
convection term corresponding to UD is built into the matrix, while the other part
is added into the source term. This, however, does not guarantee boundedness
a non-orthogonal mesh, the matrix remains diagonally equal, but, since non-
and the term SP VP is part of the diagonal coefficient. If SP > 0, the entire source
From the above discussion it is seen that the only terms that enhance the diagonal
dominance are the linear part of the source and the temporal derivative. In steady-
state calculations, the influence of the temporal derivative does not exist, and the
the diagonal dominance is increased by addition of the artificial term to both left and
1−α X 1−α
aP φnP + aP φnP + aN φnN = RP + aP φoP , (3.50)
α N
α
i.e.,
aP n X 1−α
φP + aN φnN = RP + aP φoP , (3.51)
α N
α
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 61
where φoP is the value from the previous iteration and α is the under-relaxation factor
(0 < α ≤ 1). When steady-state is reached, the value of φ stays the same in the
consecutive iterations (φoP = φnP ) and the additional terms cancel out.
In this study, the Conjugate Gradient (CG) method, proposed by Hestens and
Steifel [38] is used. This method guarantees the the number of iterations needed to
obtain the solution is less or equal to the number of equations in the system. For
symmetric matrices, the ICCG solver (Jacobs [41]) is used, while asymmetric matrices
A closed system of partial differential equations for Newtonian fluid flow was presented
in Chapter 2, by Eqs. (2.13 to 2.17). The incompressible form of this system can also
be written as:
∇ · U = 0, (3.52)
∂U
+ ∇·(UU) − ∇·(ν∇U) = −∇p. (3.53)
∂t
When solving this system, one has to pay attention to non-linear term in the momentum
There are two ways of treating the non-linear term in the momentum equation
(Jasak [42]) - either by using a solver for non-linear systems, or by linearising the con-
vection term. The linearisation of this term is appropriate for steady-state calculations,
where, when the solution has converged, the fact that a part of the non-linear term
has been lagged is not significant. In transient problem, one can either iterate over
non-linear terms or neglect the non-linearity effects. If the time-step is large, itera-
tion greatly increases computational costs. However, in order to resolve the transient
problem well, one needs to use a small time-step, which keeps the iteration costs low
and insures that the non-linear system is fully resolved for each time-step. This holds
Assuming that all the source terms, except the pressure gradient, are contained in the
Eqn. (3.54) has been obtained from the integral form of momentum equation and
The H(U) term contains the matrix coefficients multiplied by corresponding veloc-
ities and the source part apart from the pressure gradient. In this case there are no
lation:
H(U) 1
Uf = − (∇p)f , (3.57)
aP f aP f
The discretised form of the continuity equation is obtained from Eqn. (3.15):
X
∇·U= n · Uf = 0. (3.58)
f
When Eqn. (3.57) is substituted into Eqn. (3.58) the following form of the pressure
equation is obtained:
H(U) 1
∇· =∇· ∇p . (3.59)
aP aP
By using Eqn. (3.15), the Laplacian terms in Eqs. (3.54 and 3.59) are discretised,
There are two ways of treating linear dependence of velocity on pressure and vice-versa
shown in the discretised form of the Navier-Stokes system, Eqs. (3.60 and 3.61):
simultaneously over the entire domain. This procedure does not handle non-
linearity and is comparatively costly, since the resulting matrix is several times
(Issa [40]) and SIMPLE (Patankar [52]) and their derivatives are the most popular
in the same framework, which means that they have lower storage requirements.
The PISO algorithm has been developed by Issa [40] for solving transient flow calcu-
lations described by the discretised Navier-Stokes system for incompressible flow, Eqs.
1. Momentum Predictor. The momentum equation is solved first, using the pres-
sure field from the previous time-step. The solution of the momentum equation,
and the pressure equation can be formed. The solution of the pressure equation
3. Explicit Velocity Correction. With the new pressure field, a set of conser-
the new pressure distribution. Velocity correction is done explicitly using Eqn.
(3.56).
4. Update of H(U) term. Since Eqn. (3.56) consists of two parts, there are
also two parts of the velocity correction - a correction due to the change in
the pressure gradient ( a1P ∇p) and the transported influence of corrections of
part is neglected - it is assumed that the entire velocity error comes from the error
in the pressure term. This is not true and it is therefore necessary to correct the
H(U) term, formulate the new pressure equation and repeat the procedure.
In other words, the PISO loop consists of an implicit momentum predictor followed
by a series of pressure solutions and explicit velocity corrections. The loop is repeated
The dependence of H(U) on the flux field is, on the other hand, not taken into
consideration. It means that even though after each pressure solution, with a new set
that the non-linear coupling is less important than the pressure-velocity coupling and
the coefficients in H(U) are kept constant through the entire correction sequence and
The SIMPLE algorithm, developed by Patankar [52] has the following steps:
1. To initiate the SIMPLE calculation a pressure field is guessed. From the momen-
tum equation, using the guessed pressure field, the velocity field is solved. The
factor αU .
3. A new set of fluxes is calculated using Eqn. (3.62). The new pressure field includes
both the pressure error and convection-diffusion error. In order to obtain a better
approximation of the pressure field, the coefficients of H(U) are recalculated with
4. The pressure solution is under-relaxed in order to include the velocity part of the
error:
pn = po + αp (pp − po ), (3.63)
where
• pn is the approximation of the pressure field which will be used in the next
momentum predictor,
are only approximate solutions, with systematic errors which fit into three categories:
modeling errors, discretisation errors and iteration errors. A more detailed description
The major source of numerical errors is the discretisation of the governing equations.
In this study, discretisation is second-order accurate in space and time, i.e. it is assumed
that the variation of the function over each control volume is linear. If a better solution
is needed, control volumes should be chosen in such a way that the assumption about
the linear variation becomes acceptable. In this study, the method chosen to examine
The error in the numerical solution is defined as the difference between the exact
solution of the governing equation Φ(x, t), and the numerical solution of the discrete
system φ:
E = Φ − φ. (3.64)
Richardson extrapolation is the most popular form of error estimation based on the
Taylor series truncation error analysis. The basic idea of Richardson extrapolation is
to obtain an approximation of the leading term in the truncation error from suitably
weighted solutions on two meshes with different cell size (Muzaferija [51]). The spatial
variation of the exact solution on two meshes with spacing h1 and h2 can be symbolically
where
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 67
• h = h(x) is the local mesh size calculated as the ratio of cell volume and surface
area:
VP
h= P , (3.67)
f |S|
φ(x, h2 ) − φ(x, h1 )
C(x) = . (3.68)
hp1 − hp2
The estimate of C(x), Eqn.(3.68), can be used to improve the fine mesh solution
The Richardson extrapolation error estimate is calculated from the difference be-
tween the improved solution and the solution from the fine mesh:
|φ(x, h2 ) − φ(x, h1 )|
et (φ) = |φ(x, 0) − φ(x, h2 )| = p . (3.70)
h1
h2
− 1
|φ(x, h2 ) − φ(x, h1 )|
et (φ) = 2 . (3.71)
h1
h2
−1
Chapter 3. Finite Volume Discretisation 68
3.7 Closure
In this Chapter, the Finite Volume Method of discretisation has been described. The
spatial discretisation, explained in Section 3.2, allows for the use of the arbitrary control
each term of the governing equations has been described. Implementation of boundary
In Section 3.4, a system of linear algebraic equations, obtained from the discreti-
sation of governing equations has been analysed. The influence of each term in the
The discretisation procedure for the Navier-Stokes systems has been presented in
Section 3.5. The pressure equation has been derived and two methods of solving the
pressure-velocity system have been described: the PISO algorithm for the transient
numerical error was presented. This method will be used throughout this study.
Chapter 4
4.1 Introduction
number of points in the domain. The quality of the numerical solution depends on the
This Chapter investigates the applicability of CFD as a suitable tool for solving lam-
lubrication problems because the fluid film thickness is several orders of magnitude less
than its longitudinal or transverse dimension, whereas the CFD method was developed
and has been shown to be an accurate numerical process only for relatively much thicker
films.
In this Chapter, two geometries (infinitely long linear wedge and infinitely long step
bearing) for which analytical solutions of the Reynolds Equation exist, are analysed.
The Reynolds Equation, itself, is an approximation which holds well in certain hy-
drodynamic conditions. Since both are hydrodynamic problems with smooth surfaces,
69
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 70
shallow wedge as shown in Figure 4.1. Their relative motion drags the lubricant in
V2
Surface 2 W2 U V1
2 z
y
h W1
Surface 1 x
U1
between them, creating pressures of up to 200 MPa, high enough to support external
loads. The lubricant film is usually thicker than the biggest surface roughness, which
rigid HL are not high enough to significantly deform the rubbing surfaces nor to increase
In Chapter 2, a full set of governing equations for fluid flow was given. In fluid film
lubrication, certain simplifications due to the properties of the lubricant and geometry
of the bearing can be made, leading to the derivation of the Reynolds Equation from
NS equations.
By assuming that:
• viscosity and density are constant across and through the fluid film,
the governing equations for any fluid flow, Eqs. (2.13 to 2.17) reduce to:
2
1 ∂p ∂ u ∂2u ∂2u
= ν + + 2
ρ ∂x ∂x2 ∂y 2 ∂z
∂u ∂u ∂u ∂u
− +u +v +w (4.1)
∂t ∂x ∂y ∂z
2
1 ∂p ∂ v ∂2v ∂2v
= ν + +
ρ ∂y ∂x2 ∂y 2 ∂z 2
∂v ∂v ∂v ∂v
− +u +v +w (4.2)
∂t ∂x ∂y ∂z
2
1 ∂p ∂ w ∂2w ∂2w
= ν + + 2
ρ ∂z ∂x2 ∂y 2 ∂z
∂w ∂w ∂w ∂w
− +u +v +w (4.3)
∂t ∂x ∂y ∂z
∂p
• the pressure does not vary across the film, i.e. = 0;
∂z
∂2u ∂2v
• the only relevant viscous terms are ν and ν .
∂z 2 ∂z 2
By taking into account these assumptions and since ν = ηρ, where ν is kinematic
∂p ∂2u
= η 2, (4.5)
∂x ∂z
∂p ∂2v
= η 2, (4.6)
∂y ∂z
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 72
∂p
= 0. (4.7)
∂z
The Eqs. (4.5 to 4.7) were also obtained through order of magnitude analysis for the
For both cases studied in this Chapter, pressure at the inlet and outlet boundaries of
the bearing is set to zero and zero velocity gradient in the direction normal to sliding
At the solid walls, the ’no-slip’ boundary condition is assumed for the flow equations,
i.e. the velocity field has a fixed value, while the pressure field has a zero gradient
boundary condition.
1 ∂p z
u= · (z 2 − zh) + (U2 − U1 ) + U1 . (4.8)
2η ∂x h
The velocity consists of three terms; the first term on r.h.s. in Eqn. (4.8) describes the
flow due to the pressure gradient, the second term describes the flow due to the mean
surface velocity and the third term is the velocity of the bottom surface. Similarly, the
By calculating the flow in each direction and applying the law of continuity of
volume flow (equivalent to the law of the continuity of mass, because of the constant
Let us assume that the bearing surfaces do not move in the transverse direction (i.e.
speaking valid only for infinitely long bearings, although it is often assumed to be true
even for bearings with aspect ratios (width-length ratios) as low as 5 (Chen and Hahn
[15]), the pressure is a function of x only and Eqn. (4.9) simplifies to:
∂ h3 ∂p ∂h
= 6U1 , (4.10)
∂x η ∂x ∂x
which has an analytical solution for both geometries studied in this Chapter. The
Load
Load per unit length, W/L, is obtained by further integration of pressure equation:
Z B
W
= pdx. (4.11)
L 0
Friction
∂u
τ= η . (4.13)
∂z z=0
Friction Coefficient
The friction coefficient is defined as the ratio between the total friction and the total
F
µ= . (4.14)
W
In this study the FOAM computer package [73] was used to obtain numerical solutions
for the full NS equations. FOAM is an open source CFD code based on the Finite
z h1
h h0
x U1
B
- Bearing width - B = 20 mm
- Maximum height - h1 = 2 µm
- Minimum height - h0 = 1 µm
- Velocity of the bottom wall - U1 = 1m/s
- Density of the lubricant - ρ = 103 kg/m3
- Dynamic viscosity of the lubricant - η = 10−2 Pas
The Reynolds number for this case is Re = 10−1 , indicating laminar flow.
Substituting Eqn. (4.15) into the 1D Reynolds equation, Eqn. (4.10) and integrating
over x, the pressure distribution is obtained for an infinitely long linear wedge (Cameron
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 75
[12]):
6U ηB K Bx 1 − Bx
p= , (4.16)
h20 (2 + K) 1 + K − K x 2
B
where
h1 − h 0
K= . (4.17)
h0
3U K 1 + K − Bx (2 + K) z
u= 2 3 · (z 2 − zh) − U1 + U1 , (4.18)
h0 (2 + K) 1 + K − Kx h
B
Substituting Eqn. (4.16) into Eqn. (4.11), the load per unit length is obtained:
W 6U ηB 2 1 ln(1 + K) 2
= − . (4.19)
L h20 K K 2+K
In case of infinitely long linear wedge, the mesh consisted of one block with a uniform
grid as shown in Figure 4.3. The number of grid points in the longitudinal (Nx ) and
transverse (Nz ) direction was varied, and the resultant variations of maximum pressure
and total load were observed. Table 4.1 shows the results for the mesh refinement.
The mesh study was done in three ways. Firstly, the initial grid size 100 x 10 cells
was refined four times by factor 2 in both directions. The error in the numerical solution
for the maximum pressure along the bottom wall, et (pmax ), was found using Richardson
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 76
Nz
Nx
Figure 4.3: Mesh structure in the computational domain of the linear wedge.
Extrapolation, Eqn. (3.71). However, the grid refinement can also be done only in one
direction, leading to much smaller grids and less computational time. Figure 4.4 shows
the variation of maximum pressure along the bottom wall with the refinement done in
From the mesh study conducted it can be concluded that the refinement has to be done
in z direction. The mesh used from now onwards was of the grid size 100 x 20.
Numerical values for total load and total friction along the bottom wall of the bearing
where
W
• Φ= fi = pi adjacent to lower surface - for calculation of load,
L
F
• Φ= fi = τi adjacent to lower surface - for calculation of friction.
L
2
x-z refinement
x refinement
1.5 z refinement
Var(pmax) [%]
0.5
0
0 2 4 6 8
Grid refinement factor
Figure 4.4: Variation of maximum pressure and total load with the mesh refinement
in (a) the x and z directions, (b) x direction, (c) z direction.
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 78
Pressure
In Figure 4.5 numerical results for the pressure distribution along the bottom wall
of the bearing are shown alongside those obtained from the Reynolds approximation,
p−pRey
Eqn. (4.16). The maximum error in pressure is max pRey = 0.10%, which confirms
50
Reynolds’ solution
Numerical results
40
p [MPa]
30
20
10
0
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02
x [m]
Figure 4.5: Pressure distribution along the bottom wall of the linear wedge.
Velocity
In Figure 4.6, the analytical results from Eqn. (4.18) for the x-component of velocity in
three different locations of the bearing are compared with the numerical results. The
In Figure 4.7, the velocity profiles at the inlet, in the middle and at the outlet of the
linear wedge are shown. The difference between the velocity profiles at the inlet and
the outlet is due to different pressure gradients, i.e. the pressure gradient is positive
2 2 2
Reynolds Reynolds Reynolds
1.5 Numerical results 1.5 Numerical results 1.5 Numerical results
z [µm]
z [µm]
z [µm]
1 1 1
0 0 0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
u [m/s] u [m/s] u [m/s]
Figure 4.7: Velocity profiles on three different locations along the linear wedge.
The other geometry of interest is an infinitely long step bearing as shown in Figure 4.8.
What makes this problem interesting is that the analytical solution of the Reynolds
Equation exists, and at the same time, the steep geometry of the step creates the need
for local refinement of the computational mesh in order to produce good numerical
results.
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 80
B
B1 B2
h1
h0
z
x U1
The Reynolds number for this case is Re = 10−1 , indicating laminar flow.
The pressure distribution for this case is analytically obtained from the oil flow rate
equation (Cameron [12]), assuming the pressure gradient is constant due to the geom-
etry (i.e. flow between parallel walls) and positive on the left side of the step, and
constant and negative on the right side of the step. After equating the flow rate from
the left and from the right side at the step, the maximum pressure is obtained:
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 81
6ηU1 (h1 − h0 )
pmax = . (4.23)
h31 /B1 + h30 /B2
Velocity
Since the pressure gradient is constant on the right hand side and on the left hand
side of the step, an analytical solution exists for the velocity profile across the bearing
The maximum pressure is calculated from Eqn. (4.23) and the pressure gradients
for the left and the right side of the step are obtained from:
2pmax
for 0 ≤ x < B1 ,
∂p B
= (4.24)
∂x
− 2pmax for B1 < x ≤ B2 .
B
∂2u 1 ∂p
ν 2
= . (4.25)
∂z ρ ∂x
After integrating twice over dz, using appropriate boundary conditions (z1 = 0 u1 = U1 ,
substituting the pressure gradient from Eqn. (4.24), the equation for the x-component
of velocity is obtained:
1 pmax 2 ηU1 + pmax
B
h21
z − z + U1 for 0 ≤ x < B1 ,
η B
h1 η
u= (4.26)
−1 pmax 2 ηU1 + pmax
B
h20
z − z + U1 for B1 < x ≤ B2 .
η B h0 η
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 82
block 2
block 1 block 3
Figure 4.9: Mesh and block structure in the computational domain of the step bearing.
Load
The total load per unit length is merely pmax B/2 as the pressure distribution is trian-
gular:
W B 6ηU1 B (h1 − h0 )
= pmax = (4.27)
L 2 2 h31 /B1 + h30 /B2
Friction
F pmax B1 B2 − B 1
= (h1 − h0 ) + U1 η + (4.28)
L 2 h1 h0
As shown in Fig. 4.9, the computational domain is divided into three blocks, each
z-direction and non-uniform in x-direction with the largest cell (i.e. the one furthest
away from the step), ∆xmax being 3000 times bigger than the smallest (i.e. the one
closest to the step), ∆xmin . Values for ∆xmax and ∆xmin for each mesh are shown in
Table 4.2. The grid refinement around the step is necessary to capture the occurrence
of the recirculation and other flow changes due to the sudden change in geometry.
The error was estimated using Eqn. (3.71). The mesh used from now onwards has
70
60
Numerical results
Reynolds
50
p [MPa]
40
30
20
10
0
0 0.005 0.01 0.015 0.02
x [m]
Figure 4.10: Pressure distribution along the bottom wall of the step bearing.
Pressure
In Figure 4.10, the analytical results for pressure distribution along the bottom wall of
the bearing are plotted against numerical results. The maximum error in pressure is
p−pRey
max pRey = 0.09%, which confirms good accord between analytical and numerical
results.
Because the mesh is non-uniform in x-direction, Simpson’s rule, Eqn. (4.21), could
not be used in the calculation of load and friction. The following equation was used
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 84
instead:
Nx /2−1
X
Φ= 1/2 (x2i+1 − x2i ) (f2i+1 + f2i ), (4.29)
i=0
with
W
• Φ= fi = pi adjacent to lower surface - for calculation of load,
L
F
• Φ= fi = τi adjacent to lower surface - for calculation of friction.
L
Numerical results for load and friction are shown in Table 4.2.
Velocity
In Figure 4.11, the analytical results from Eqn. (4.26) for the x-component of velocity
on the left and the right of the step of the bearing are compared with the numerical
In Figure 4.12, the velocity profile is shown in three different locations. An interest-
ing phenomenon of a backflow from the step all the way back to the inlet can be seen
(Figure 4.11 a.), which is also predicted in the analytical solution (4.26). The backflow
is due to the adverse pressure gradient (Figure 4.10) in the inlet region.
4.5 Closure
This Chapter investigated the applicability of CFD as a tool for solving laminar hy-
drodynamic lubrication problems. The study was done on two different geometries:
an infinitely long linear wedge and an infinitely long step bearing. Reynolds approxi-
mation holds for both of those geometries. For both cases in this Chapter, it can be
seen that the numerical CFD results are in good agreement with the analytical ones
(the maximum error for pressure ≤ 1%). This validation of the computational method
was necessary, because CFD usually deals with cases with very different geometry to
that present in bearings. The code used has proved to be robust enough to handle big
aspect ratios (≈ 103 ) present in these cases. The following conclusions can be drawn
Numerical results
1.5 Reynolds
z [µm]
1
0.5
0
0 0.25 0.5 0.75 1
u [m/s]
(a)
Numerical results
1.5 Reynolds
z [µm]
0.5
0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1
u [m/s]
(b)
Figure 4.11: The x - component of the velocity vector at (a) x = 0.5 mm and
(b) x = 19.5 mm.
Figure 4.12: Velocity profile at the three positions in the step bearing.
Chapter 4. Validation of CFD Approach Using Simple Converging Bearings 86
1. The CFD software has been shown to be capable of accurately handling steady
2. CFD results have confirmed the assumption of constant pressure across the film
3. CFD results have confirmed that the neglect of inertia and certain viscous terms
Computational Modelling of
Cavitation
5.1 Introduction
using two hydrodynamic problems for which the Reynolds Equation has an analytical
solution. From the two geometries studied, it was shown that, for simple, converging
In the case of a roller bearing, however, the pressure drops below the atmospheric
pressure in the diverging region, so cavitation occurs. The physical situation in the case
of cavitation is extreme in several respects. The density ratio between two phases is very
large, roughly 10,000:1. The aspect ratio of the computational cells in the cavitating
region is of the order of 1000:1, which means that individual cavitation bubbles could
span several computational cells. These extremes make this a challenging problem to
model. Special steps are required to ensure stability when modelling a large change in
87
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 88
In CFD, cavitation has been modelled numerically by two main methods, interface
tracking and continuum methods. Interface tracking is a numerical technique for two-
phase flows. In this case each phase is treated separately and there is only one phase
present at any location in the solution domain. Normally, there are separate equations
for conservation of mass and momentum of each phase, which makes the computational
cost of modelling at least six times the cost of continuum methods, as shown by Rider
and Kothe [57]. The authors also noted that the maximum density ratio between the
In a continuum method model, both phases are considered to be the same fluid,
where the density reflects the liquid and vapour content of the cell. The computational
cost of this model is lower than of the interface tracking because continuum method
requires no more equations than single-phase flow. The works of Kubota et al. [47],
Delannoy and Kueny [17], Chen and Heister [16], and Avva et al. [5] are all examples
of continuum methods.
Kubota et al. [47] developed one of the first continuum models of cavitating flow.
Their model was based on the assumption that the fluid was a uniform mixture of
liquid and very small, spherical bubbles. They used relations for bubble radius, average
cell density, and pressure to close the set of equations. Because of the extreme density
ratio between the liquid and vapour, they chose to neglect the mass of the vapour. The
authors were limited to moderate void fractions because of severe stability problems.
Delannoy and Kueny [17] used a simpler method for closure of the hydrodynamic
equations. They assumed a barotropic equation of state in which density was a function
of pressure. The two constant densities for liquid and vapour were joined by a sine
function whose maximum slope was chosen to represent roughly the speed of sound
of a two-phase mixture. Their scheme was based on the SIMPLE algorithm, which
models incompressible flows. One of the limitations of their model is that they used
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 89
the vapour-to-liquid density ratio of 1:100, rather than a realistic ratio of 1:10 5 . Their
model was later employed to model the cavitation in HL contacts by van Odyck [66]
Chen and Heister [16] rejected the idea of a simple one-to-one mapping of pressure
and density. They argued that the pressure field should be related to the density
history. However, they assumed that the bubble number per unit mass was constant
and that each cell was uniformly filled with small, spherical bubbles. This technique
worked well for large-scale flows, but was not appropriate for small-scale geometry, like
a roller bearing.
Avva et al. [5] used an energy equation for closure. They started with an energy
equation for a two-phase mixture and assumed homogeneous flow, no slip, and ther-
modynamic equilibrium. With these assumptions, the energy equation was simplified
to a single fluid energy equation based on a mean cell density. The model was limited
to the density ratio of 3,000:1. Avva’s model forms the basis of the one used in the
current study.
An important limitation of all the studies already mentioned is that the pure phases
are considered to be incompressible. The model which is used in the current study,
considers the compressibility of both pure phases. Thermal non-equilibrium effects will
Suitable average properties (density, viscosity) are determined and the mixture
Differences in velocity, temperature, and chemical potential between the phases will
promote mutual momentum, heat and mass transfer. Often these processes proceed
very rapidly, particularly when one phase is finely dispersed in the other, and it can
be assumed that equilibrium is reached. In this case the average values of velocity,
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 90
temperature, and chemical potential are the same as the values for each component
and the flow is homogeneous equilibrium flow. This method is a convenient way of
modeling the flow because it requires no more equations than the single-phase flow.
phase fluid, transforming from entirely liquid at high pressure, through a mixed liq-
the liquid and vapour states and thus permits cavitation based on vapour formation
to occur as the pressure falls in a divergent region (Dellanoy and Kueny [17]). In the
current study, the isentropic phase transformation approach was employed (Avva [5]).
Dh DP
ρ = + ∇k∇T + Φ. (5.1)
Dt Dt
Assuming that the rapid change between liquid and vapour phases during cavitation
is isentropic and that enthalpy and pressure work terms dominate (i.e. they are at least
five orders of magnitude greater than the conduction and viscous terms), the energy
(Wallis [71]):
1 α 1−α
=ρ· + , (5.4)
a2 2
ρg ag ρl a2l
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 91
where ρg , ag , ρl , al are the density and speed of sound of the vapour and liquid phases
respectively, ρ is the density of the phase mixture and α is the volume fraction of
ρ − ρl
α= . (5.5)
ρg − ρ l
The densities of both the superheated vapour and the subcooled liquid were set to vary
p − psat
(i) Liquid phase; ρl = ρlSat +
a2l
p
(ii) Vapour phase; ρg = max , ρg , (5.6)
a2g sat
where ρlSat and ρgSat are the densities of the liquid and vapour at the saturation
pressure, pSat . (The second term in Eqn. (5.6 ii) prevents the density becoming
The density of the phase mixture is calculated using the continuity equation, Eqn.
(2.2), and the local vapour fraction can then be obtained via Eqn. (5.5).
η = ρ · (ανg + (1 − α) νl ) . (5.7)
From the equation of state for the ideal gas, the dependence of ρgsat on psat is derived:
psat · M
ρgSat = , (5.8)
R·T
In Faber [27], the speed of sound in vapour for an ideal gas is expressed by:
γp γRT
a2g = = , (5.9)
ρ M
For a lubricant (in this case, values taken are for n-hexadecane), typical values are:
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 92
• M = 0.3 kg/mol,
• γ = 1.2 and
Speed of sound in liquid was obtained from Ball and Trusler [6], while the kinematic
viscosity and saturation density of liquid were chosen to give a dynamic viscosity of
0.01 Pas.
Each of the fluid parameters clearly has its influence on the pressure-density re-
lationship, i.e. how steep is the curve which links the fluid phase with the vapour
A critical feature of the cavitation model was found to be the speed of sound in vapour,
ag and too low values gave computational instability. This can be seen from Figure 5.1,
which shows the plots of Eqn. (5.10) for three different values of ag , whilst the other
parameters were kept at the constant, previously stated, values. From this Figure, it
can be seen that the gradient of change between the vapour and the liquid phase is the
biggest for ag = 100 m/s, which leads to the non-convergence of the numerical results.
For this reason a value of 200 m/s was chosen, which is somewhat higher than the ideal
The fluid properties employed in the present calculations are listed in Table 5.1.
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 93
1000
ag = 100 m/s
= 200 m/s
800 = 300 m/s
ρ [kg/m ]
600
3
400
200
0
-2500 -2000 -1500 -1000 -500 0 500
p [Pa]
Table 5.1: Values of the fluid properties used in the cavitation model.
To test that the above model successfully handles cavitation in diverging regions, two
geometries shown in Figure 5.2 were employed: a flat wall sliding against a half cylinder
and a full cylinder rolling between the two walls. In both cases, an infinitely long
In both cases, the width of the domain is L = 120 mm, the radius of the cylinder is
R = 10 mm, and the minimum gap between the cylinder and the wall is h0 = 100 nm.
The centre of the cylinder has coordinates (0,0,R). The values of fluid properties are
in Table 5.1.
U1 h0
R R U2
φ φ
z h h0 h h0
x x=0 x=0
U1 U1
L L
(a) (b)
Figure 5.2: Bearing geometries used in cavitation model; (a) Pure sliding, half-cylinder
case, (b) Pure rolling, full-cylinder case.
The film thickness (i.e. the distance between the bottom wall and the line z = R) at
In case of a roller bearing, high pressures are localised around the minimum film thick-
ness, where φ has a small value. Therefore, higher terms in the cosine expansion can
be neglected:
φ2 φ4 φ6 φ2
cos φ = 1 − + − +... ≈ 1− . (5.12)
2 4 6 2
By combining Eqs. (5.11 and 5.12), the approximation of the film thickness for |x| ≤ R
40 40
30 30
p [MPa]
0 0
-10 -10
-20 -20
-30 -30
-40 -40
-0.0003 -0.0002 -0.0001 0 0.0001 0.0002 0.0003 -0.0003 -0.0002 -0.0001 0 0.0001 0.0002 0.0003
x [m] x [m]
Figure 5.3: Pressure distribution along the bottom wall of the roller bearing; (a) for
a full Sommerfeld solution near the centre of the roller bearing; (b) numerical results
obtained with and without the cavitation model
By substituting Eqn. (5.13) into the Reynolds Equation, Eqn. (4.10), and integrating
over the boundary conditions p = 105 Pa for x = ±∞, we obtain (Cameron [12]):
x 5
p(x) = −2U1 η 2
2 + 10 for |x| ≤ R
x
h20 1 +
2Rh0
x 5
p(x) = −2U1 η 2 + 10 for |x| ≥ R (5.14)
(h0 + R)
This pressure distribution, also known as Full Sommerfeld Condition, is anti- sym-
metrical, producing, therefore, unrealistic negative pressures and zero load support. In
order to obtain a realistic result, cavitation must be included in the numerical model.
Figure 5.3 (a) shows the pressure distribution obtained from Eqn. (5.14) alongside the
numerical results using the SIMPLE algorithm. In Figure 5.3 (b), numerical results
for pressure distribution with and without cavitation model are plotted alongside each
Graphs in Figure 5.4 show expanded views of the CFD pressure and density distri-
butions near the centre of the contact for the two cases, comparing the values at the
bottom wall and bottom half of the cylinder. Graphs (a) and (c) show all the pressure
and density values, whilst the graphs (b) and (d) show the values of pressure around
the atmospheric pressure (patm = 0.1 MPa). The density peak at the position of maxi-
mum pressure indicates the compressibility of the liquid phase. It can be seen that the
cavitation does not occur instantaneously as the pressure drops below the saturation
pressure. According to the model employed, the fluid can be over-expanded by reduc-
ing its pressure to below the vapour pressure, and even to negative pressures, until the
liquid reaches the limit of its tensile strength and cavitates (Apfel [3]). The reformation
takes place in a 0.5 mm zone just downstream of the minimum film thickness.
Figure 5.5 shows density distribution in the diverging part of the bearing for both
the pure sliding and the pure rolling case. In this figure, the geometry is distorted
5.4 and 5.5 show lots of similarities between the pure rolling and the pure sliding cases.
However, the density variation in the immediate diverging region of the contact, shows
that for the pure rolling case, the fluid cavitates next to the cylinder surface. That
might be expected since the curvature of this surface will provide a slightly greater
local level of expansion. In the pure sliding case, the fluid cavitates initially close to
the centre of the fluid film but evaporates more rapidly from the sliding surface than
40 0.3
2000 2000
ρwall ρwall
ρcylinder ρcylinder
20 pwall 0.2 pwall
1500 1500
pcylinder pcylinder
ρ [kg/m ]
ρ [kg/m ]
p [MPa]
3
p [MPa]
3
0 1000 0.1 1000
500 0 500
-20
0 -0.1 0
-40
-0.0004 -0.0002 0 0.0002 0.0004 -0.0004 -0.0002 0 0.0002 0.0004
x [m] x [m]
(a) (b)
40 0.3
2000 2000
ρ wall ρ wall
ρ cylinder ρ cylinder
20 p wall 0.2 p wall
1500 p cylinder
1500
p cylinder
ρ [kg/m ]
ρ [kg/m ]
p [MPa]
3
p [MPa]
500 0 500
-20
0 -0.1 0
-40
-0.0004 -0.0002 0 0.0002 0.0004 -0.0004 -0.0002 0 0.0002 0.0004
x [m] x [m]
(c) (d)
Figure 5.4: Density and pressure distributions along the bottom wall and bottom half
of the cylinder; (a) and (b) for rolling case, (c) and (d) for sliding case
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 98
(a)
(b)
Figure 5.5: Density distribution and isolines in exit region; (a) for the pure rolling, full-
cylinder contact, (b) for the pure sliding, half-cylinder contact (Note that the vertical
z-scale varies across the region shown).
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 99
compared to the one obtained from Eqn. (5.10). There is a distinction between the
formation of cavitation and the subsequent re-formation of the fluid. The numerical
results do not correspond exactly to the analytical solution because according to the
1000
800
600
ρ [g/m ]
3
0
-5000 0 5000 10000
p [Pa]
Figure 5.6: Pressure–density dependence for the half-cylinder case (magnified around
cavitation values).
Figures 5.7 (a) and 5.7 (b) show streamlines for the cavitation cases. The geometry
In Figure 5.8 it is shown that the backflow starts at x = -5e-5 m in the converging
region of the half-cylinder case and it goes all the way back to the inlet.
Figure 5.9 shows that, for the full cylinder case, the backflow in the converging
region starts at x = -15e-5 m at the bottom wall and at x = 15e-5 m at the top wall.
The backflow in the inlet region occurs because not all of the fluid can go through the
small gap, only a small amount gets dragged into the diverging region. Figure 5.10
shows the density isolines and the velocity profile for the half-cylinder and the full-
cylinder cases in the diverging region. It can be noticed that the backflow starts at
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 100
Figure 5.7: Streamlines in cavitation cases; (a) the pure-sliding, half-cylinder, (b) the
pure-rolling, full-cylinder (distorted geometry - minimum gap increased to 10−3 m).
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 101
Figure 5.8: Velocity profiles for the half-cylinder case in the converging region leading
to the contact at x = 0 m.
(a)
(b)
Figure 5.9: Velocity profiles for the full cylinder case in the converging region leading
to the contact at x = 0 m; (a) near the bottom wall, (b) near the top wall.
x = 40e-5 m and it goes all the way to the outlet. The backflow in the outlet region
occurs because of the negative pressure in the cavitating zone which draws the fluid
towards itself. The backflow zones at the inlet and the outlet are in the same positions
The computational domain is divided into blocks with non-uniform grid in the x-
direction. Figure 5.11 shows the bottom right quarter of the bearing. The mesh is
symmetrical in respect to x = 0 and z = R. The aspect ratio of the mesh ranges from
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 102
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
Figure 5.10: Density distribution and the velocity profile at the reformation point at
x = 40e-5 m; (a) density isolines for the half cylinder, (b) velocity profile for the half
cylinder, (c) density isolines for the full cylinder, (d) velocity profile for the full cylinder.
Chapter 5. Computational Modelling of Cavitation 103
z=R
R
4
z=0.3R
3
z=0
1 2
z=−h0
x=0 0.7R 6R
0.05R
Figure 5.11: Mesh structure in the computational domain of the cylinder on the flat
geometry (bottom right quarter).
the order of 103 near the center to the order of 1 in the far regions from the contact. In
order to successfully model the cavitation we must have a very fine mesh in the center
The number of cells in each block is given in Table 5.2. Blocks numbered 1-3, have
the same number of points in the z-direction, N z3 , whilst block number 4 has N z4
Table 5.2: Number of points in the x− and the z− direction for each block.
dimension of the cell adjacent to block 1, was 250 times smaller than the one adjacent
to the block 3 (a uniform expansion of ca. 1.04). From Figure 5.4, it can be seen that
the steep pressure and density gradients occur only in the block 1, nearest to the centre.
That is why the mesh is the finest in that region. Further towards inlet and outlet,
the flow is parallel to the moving wall and there are no steep gradients in pressure and
5.6 Closure
In this Chapter two cases were studied: the pure rolling, full cylinder and the pure
sliding, half cylinder. In both cases the cavitation occurs in the divergent region of
the bearing, which requires a suitable computational model. The computational model
used in this work is a continuum method model with both the vapour and the liquid
phases considered to be the same fluid. The density of the fluid determines wheather
Numerical results have shown many similarities between the pure sliding and the
pure rolling case. In both cases, there was occurrence of the backflow in the converging
and diverging region. The difference between them was that the fluid cavitated next
to the cylinder surface in the pure rolling case, whereas in the pure sliding case, it
started cavitating in the centre of the fluid film but evaporated more rapidly close to
It should be noted that the cavitation model used in this work should not be
that cavitation occurs via the escape of dissolved gases in low pressure liquid regions.
Also, the isentropic evaporation cavitation model adopted is one developed primarily
for behaviour in higher Reynolds number flows and may not be fully appropriate to
expansion in the pocket entry. However, the predictions made from it are likely to be
6.1 Introduction
tries: an infinitely long linear wedge and an infinitely long step bearing. It was seen
how the CFD solver can handle the steep geometry of the step bearing and how results
In Chapter 5, the geometry of a roller bearing was modelled, introducing the need
for cavitation modelling in the diverging region of the bearing. The results, even though
bearings. Although pockets have been widely used for many years in hybrid hydrody-
namic/hydrostatic bearings, there are normally placed at the bearing inlet to promote
fluid entrainment (entry pockets) or are connected to an oil supply port or channel.
The use of isolated pockets in the bearing surface has, until recently, received little
attention.
In the last few years, however, it has been found that the friction coefficient of
very low or zero convergence ratio bearings (whose surfaces are almost parallel), such
as those present at piston skirts and face seals, may be very significantly reduced if
one of the bearing surfaces is indented with many tiny, closed pockets (Ronen et al.
[58], Ryk [59], Etsion [23], Goloch [30]). Theoretical analysis of such textured surface
105
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 106
systems has been carried out using Reynolds equation, which suggests that cavitation
may occur at the divergent entrance to the pockets, followed by a local increase in
hydrodynamic pressure (Hamilton [33], Etsion [22]). Typical suggested dimple sizes
More recently, experimental work has indicated that the main role of these pockets
may be to promote fluid entrainment at low speeds and thus cause the bearing to enter
sliding speed than for smooth surfaces (Wang [72]), (Kovalchenko [46]). This may
imply that the dimples may be acting in the inlet as entry-pockets, as suggested by
Tonder [63]. Very recently, CFD has been employed to show that roughness, where
the depth and width scales of the roughness features are of similar order, can produce
In this study, a simple linear pad bearing was analysed in which the stator had one
or more shallow, macroscale pockets. A wide range of convergence ratios, from values
of unity, typical of plain thrust bearings, to very small values more representative of
In 6.2 general information about the fluid properties, boundary conditions and the
In Section 6.3, a 2D bearing with a single pocket will be studied. In this study, 2D
is used to mean a bearing which is infinitely long transverse to the direction of surface
direction. The effect of varying the pocket height, position, size and convergence ratio
on total load support and total friction will be examined. The case with very low
convergence ratio will be briefly discussed because of the possible cavitation effects.
In Section 6.4, similar analysis will be conducted for a 2D bearing with more than
one pocket. Section 6.5 will conclude the Chapter with the study of a 3D bearing with
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 107
pockets.
Throughout this Chapter, density of liquid is set to ρ = 103 kg/m3 , dynamic viscosity
to η = 10−2 Pas and the speed of the bottom wall of the bearing is U1 = 1 m/s. The
h1 − h 0
K= . (6.1)
h0
In most work in this Chapter, the convergence ratio, K, was kept at a typical engineer-
ing value for pad bearings of K = 1. This convergence ratio gives almost optimally
high pressures in a linear bearing and in no case at K = 1 was any cavitation observed
The pressure at the inlet and outlet boundaries was set to atmospheric (105 Pa) and
zero velocity gradient in the normal direction was assumed for the velocity field. This
to set the boundaries relatively far from the region of interest, so that they do not
overly influence the numerical solution. The domain was fully flooded.
At the solid walls, the ’no-slip’ boundary condition was assumed for the momentum
equations. In practice this involved setting the velocity of the face of each fluid cell
adjacent to the wall to have the same velocity as that of the wall itself.
with
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 108
W
• Φ= fi = pi adjacent to lower surface - for calculation of load,
L
F
• Φ= fi = τi adjacent to lower surface - for calculation of friction.
L
Friction coefficient is the ratio of the bearing friction per unit length to the bearing
F
µ= .
W
In order to find an appropriate mesh for the bearing pockets, it was necessary to carry
out a grid refinement study. The bearing geometry shown in Figure 6.1 was used with
the pocket size BP = 5 mm and its entrance located at x = 10 mm. The convergence
ratio was K = 1. To model each pocket, an eight block mesh was used as shown in
Figure 6.2. A uniform mesh was employed in blocks 1,2,7 and 8 but a non-uniform
mesh was used within the pocket itself. In blocks 3,4,5 and 6, the x dimension of the
cells adjacent to the entry and exit of the pocket were 400 times smaller than those of
the cells in the centre of the pocket (a uniform expansion of ca. 1.06).
B
B1 Bp B2
h3
.
.
z y h1 h h0
x U
Table 6.1 summarises various cases in which the number of cells in both the x and
the z direction were varied. As with no pocket, the solution is more sensitive to grid
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 109
Bp
4 6
.
.
z y h1 1 2 3 5 7 8 h0
x U
0.01Bp
refinement in the z than in the x-direction. Based on Table 6.1, the mesh from option
2 was employed in further work in this study. In that case, cells immediately adjacent
The cases studied in this section have the geometry as shown in Figure 6.1. The pocket
of height h3 is constructed on the stationary, top wall. The height, size and position of
the pocket will be varied, as well as the convergence ratio of the bearing. Dependence
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 110
Whilst the height of the pocket, h3 , was varied, the other values were kept constant:
Figures 6.3a and 6.3b compare pressure and shear stress profiles at the lower, mov-
ing surface across the bearing for a range of h3 /h0 ratios from zero (no pocket) to 40
(40 µm deep pocket). As the depth of the bearing pocket increases, the pressure field
becomes flatter and the shear stress lower, although the latter does not approach zero
even for the deepest pocket. This is because the boundary layer does not expand to
span the pocket, so that a high velocity gradient is maintained close to the moving
wall even within deep pockets. Because of the flatter pressure distribution, the bearing
load support is reduced by up to 4% for the deepest pockets, as indicated in Table 6.2.
However, the friction is reduced by up to 24%, with the result that the pocket pro-
duces a considerable reduction in the friction coefficient, as seen in Table 6.2. Figure
6.4 shows the dependence of the friction coefficient on the pocket height.
should be made with a non-pocketed bearing having the same load support. This
can be done simply by considering a slightly more viscous lubricant in the pocketed
bearing. However, since load support and friction of an isoviscous pad bearing are
Pocket depth Load/unit length Friction/unit length Friction coeff. µh3 /µ0
h3 [µm] W/L [kN/m] F/L [kN/m] µh3
0 634 0.153 0.000242 1
5 619 0.139 0.000225 0.926
10 613 0.126 0.000206 0.845
20 611 0.115 0.000189 0.779
30 611 0.113 0.000185 0.762
40 610 0.112 0.000184 0.759
Figure 6.5 shows the velocity distribution at the beginning, middle and the end of
the pocket of width 5 mm and height 20 µm. It illustrates the overall fluid circulation
pattern. Figure 6.6 shows expanded views of the velocity field and lower surface pres-
sure at the pocket inlet and exit regions. Figure 6.6 (a) illustrates how the recirculating
flow impacts the incoming fluid and the subsequent development of a boundary layer
next to the moving surface. Just upstream of the pocket entrance the pressure falls
slightly, before rising as the incoming meets the recirculating fluid. The change is only
a very small proportion of the pressure for the cases with K = 1 and, as will be shown
below, is more clearly seen at lower convergence ratios. Figure 6.6 (b) shows that there
is a sudden increase in pressure just before the bearing exit. This is the well-known
”ram effect” that occurs at rapidly converging constrictions such as the entrance to
pad bearings and in step bearings (Rhim [56]). At K = 1, it makes only a very slight
contribution to pressure.
In this set of cases the height of the pocket was kept constant, h3 = 20 µm, but the
location of the pocket (B1 , see Figure 6.1) was varied. The results for calculated load,
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 112
60
no pocket
h3/h0 = 3.5
50 10
20
40
40
p [MPa]
30
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
(a) Pressure
0.01
0.0075
τ [MPa]
0.005 no pocket
h3/h0 = 3.5
10
20
0.0025 40
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
Figure 6.3: Pressure and shear stress distribution along the bottom wall of the bearing
for various heights of the pocket.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 113
0.95
0.9
µh3/µ0
0.85
0.8
0 10 20 30 40
h3/h0
Figure 6.5: Velocity distribution at the beginning, middle and the end of the pocket.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 114
45.06
p [MPa]
45.04
45.02
(a)
p [MPa]
45.76
45.74
(b)
Figure 6.6: Pressure and velocity distributions at: (a) the inlet of the pocket, (b) the
exit of the pocket.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 115
friction, and friction coefficient are shown in Table 6.3. Pressure distribution along the
bottom wall is shown in Figure 6.7. From Table 6.3 and Figure 6.8 it can be seen that,
as might be expected, the optimum pocket position is centred just downstream of the
60
no pocket
B1 = 2.5 mm
50 = 5.0 mm
= 7.5 mm
= 10 mm
40 = 12.5 mm
p [MPa]
30
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
Figure 6.7: Pressure distribution along the bottom wall for bearings with varying
location of a pocket.
0.9
µh3/µ0
0.8
0.7
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
B1 [mm]
Figure 6.8: Friction coefficient ratio µh3 /µ0 for different positions of the pocket.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 116
Pocket position Load/unit length Friction/unit length Friction coeff. µh3 /µ0
B1 [mm] W/L [kN/m] F/L [kN/m] µh3
2.5 402 0.101 0.000252 1.036
5.0 521 0.102 0.000212 0.873
7.5 560 0.108 0.000193 0.766
10.0 611 0.115 0.000189 0.779
12.5 567 0.110 0.000195 0.800
Figure 6.9 compares the pressure profiles at the lower surface across five bearings of
different convergence ratio, K, all having a single, 20 µm deep pocket of width 5 mm,
starting in the middle of the bearing. As expected, there is a very large reduction in
the pressure generated and thus in load support, as K is reduced. Several features
of interest can be seen. Within the pocket at low convergence ratios, there appears
at all convergence ratios and can also be seen for K = 1 in Figure 6.6a. However, as
convergence ratio is reduced, the pressure generated in the pocket becomes comparable
in magnitude, and eventually exceeds, the pressure generated in the surrounding pad
regions.
In the K = 0.1 to 0 profiles, a pressure drop is seen to occur within the first
converging region, upstream of the pocket inlet: in effect the front land is beginning to
falls below zero at the pocket inlet and cavitation ensues. This is illustrated clearly in
Figures 6.10 (a) and 6.10 (b) which show the fluid density in the vicinity of the pocket
entrance step for the K = 0.001 bearing. Figure 6.10 (b) shows a magnified view of the
area of interest. Cavitation begins upstream of the pocket entrance at the stationary
wall and extends into the pocket. With the cavitation model used, this results in a
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 117
p [MPa] 60
K=1
30
15
p [MPa]
10 K = 0.1
5
0
2
p [MPa]
K = 0.01
1
1
p [MPa]
K = 0.001
0.5
1
p [MPa]
K=0
0.5
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
Figure 6.9: Pressure distribution at the bottom wall of the bearing for varying conver-
gence ratio, K.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 118
two-phase fluid over most of this region, but there is almost full vaporisation around
the sharp entrance tip. This is shown in Figure 6.11 which plots the density across
the pocket inlet, along a line parallel to the lower surface but just touching the tip
of the inlet. Figure 6.11 also shows how the density calculation converges over time
Pressure converged more rapidly and Figure 6.12 shows the lower wall pressure on
an expanded scale at both the entrance and exit of the pocket. At the entrance, the
pressure falls below zero and the fluid cavitates (although it only falls to a density of
700 kg/m3 at the lower wall and thus does not reach the full vapour state). There is a
Table 6.4 summarises the effect of the pocket on load support, friction and friction
It can be seen the pocket produces a very large reduction in friction coefficient at low
ratios, the origin of this effect is similar to that found with K = 1 in the previous Section
of this Chapter, i.e. the reduced friction in the pocket is greater than the reduced load
support due to the pocket. (The proportionate reduction in friction increases with
the friction for the unpocketed bearing K). However, when K becomes very small, a
second effect comes into play in that the load support of the pocketed bearing becomes
greater than that of the unpocketed bearing. This is because, at very low convergence,
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 119
(a)
(b)
Figure 6.10: Density distribution at the beginning of the pocket for K = 0.001; (a) for
the entire height of the pocket, (b) for the magnified region around the step.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 120
1000
800
ρ [kg/m ]
3
600
t = 0.6 s
= 0.8 s
400 = 1.0 s
= 1.2 s
= 1.4 s
= 1.6 s
200 = 1.8 s
= 2.0 s
0
9.95 10 10.05 10.1
x [mm]
Figure 6.11: Rate of convergence of solution for density in the pocket inlet region.
0.02 0.73
0.01 0.72
p [MPa]
p [MPa]
0 0.71
-0.01 0.7
-0.02 0.69
9.95 10 10.05 14.95 15 15.05
x [mm] x [mm]
(a) (b)
Figure 6.12: Pressure distribution at the beginning and the end of the pocket for
K = 0.001; (a) beginning, (b) end.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 121
the pressure build-up in the pocket itself, which acts as an independent step bearing,
exceeds the very small pressure generation in the rest of the bearing. For shallower
pockets this effect would be expected to become significant at higher convergence ratios.
In order to determine which size of the pocket will give the most reduction in the
friction coefficient, the pocket was kept at the constant position with B1 = 10 mm
and with the constant height of h3 = 20µm. Table 6.5 shows load per unit length, the
friction per unit length and the friction coefficient for various sizes of the pocket. It
can be seen that the optimum size of the pocket is 25% of the bearing size.
Pocket size Load/unit length Friction/unit length Friction coeff. Coeff. ratio
BP [mm] W/L [kN/m] F/L [kN/m] µh3 µh3 /µ0
no pocket 634 0.153 0.000242 1
0.3 620 0.135 0.000218 0.901
0.4 620 0.133 0.000215 0.888
0.5 611 0.115 0.000189 0.779
0.6 610 0.120 0.000197 0.814
0.7 588 0.113 0.000192 0.793
In the previous Section, the linear wedge with one pocket was analysed. It was shown
that, in order to obtain maximum reduction in the friction coefficient, the pocket area
was to be of ca. 25% of the total bearing width, that the pocket must not be placed too
close to the beginning of the bearing and that the friction coefficient reduces sufficiently
In this Section, it will be shown how CFD code can successfully model the bearings
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 122
with multiple pockets and that similar conclusions about the size and the position of
the pockets can be made as in the case with only one pocket. This Section will study
the cases with the general geometry shown in Figure 6.13. The block structure will be
h3
z
y h1 h
h0 U
x
B1 Bp Bf Bp Bp B2
similar to the one of the bearing with the single pocket (see Figure 6.2), with the mesh
being the finest at the beginning and the end of each pocket.
In previous cases, the linear wedge had one pocket, covering 25% of the total area. In
this subsection, the bearing has four pockets which cover 25% of total area (see Figure
6.13). The cases studied are shown in Table 6.6. The first case has even spacing with
other two cases, B1 is varied and Bp = Bf = 1.25 mm. In Figure 6.14, the pressure
distribution across the bottom wall is shown. From the results in Table 6.6 and pressure
plots in Figure 6.14, we see that placing the pocket too close to the inlet does not lead
In this subsection, the bearing has eight pockets which cover 50% of total area (see
Figure 6.13). The pocket depth is varied, whilst the other parameters are kept at
constant values: B1 = B2 = 0.625 mm, Bp = Bf = 1.25 mm. From Table 6.7, it can
be seen that such geometry is not adequate for reducing friction coefficient. We can
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 123
Position of the Load/unit length Friction/unit length Friction coeff. Coeff. ratio
first pocket
B1 [mm] W/L [kN/m] F/L [kN/m] µh3 µh3 /µ0
no pocket 634 0.153 0.000242 1
1.875 487 0.112 0.000230 1.052
even spacing
2.5 472 0.102 0.000216 0.893
7 580 0.109 0.000188 0.777
Table 6.6: Cases of linear wedge with four pockets covering 25% of total area.
50
B1 = 2.5 mm
= 7 mm
= 1.875 mm (even)
40
2D Reynolds
30
p [MPa]
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
Figure 6.14: Pressure distribution for the cases with four pockets covering 25% of total
area.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 124
see, however, that as in the cases with one pocket, the increase of pocket height leads
Pocket depth Load/unit length Friction/unit length Friction coeff. Coeff. ratio
h3 [µm] W/L [kN/m] F/L [kN/m] µh3 µh3 /µ0
no pocket 634 0.153 0.000242 1
5 354 0.115 0.000326 1.347
10 333 0.103 0.000309 1.277
20 325 0.088 0.000271 1.120
40 322 0.079 0.000245 1.012
Table 6.7: Cases of linear wedge with eight pockets covering 50% of total area.
In previous Section, all the cases studied assumed that the bearing is infinitely long,
which in reality, is not true. In order to show the applicability of CFD also on modelling
of 3D geometry, this Section looks into effects of pockets in a 3D square linear pad
bearing.
The pressure at all the four edges (inlet, outlet, y = ±L/2) of the bearing was set to
atmospheric (105 Pa) and zero velocity gradient in the normal direction was assumed
for the velocity field. At the solid walls, the ’no-slip’ boundary condition was assumed
A 20 mm square 3D linear pad bearing with a square pocket was examined as shown
in Figure 6.15. As for the 2D bearings analysed, the pocket area was 25% of the total
The position of the pocket is varied, whilst the other parameters are kept at constant
values. The pocket height is h3 = 20 µm. Table 6.8 summarises the load and friction
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 125
B1 Bp
L1
y
x B
performance for various positions of the pocket. The same conclusion can be drawn as
in previous cases; the optimum position of the pocket is in the high pressure region.
It can be seen that the friction coefficient reduction is less than for 2D cases but it is
still considerable. Figure 6.16 shows the pressure field for the case with the maximum
reduction of the friction coefficient, with B1 = 5 mm. In Figure 6.17, the pressure
Figure 6.16: Pressure distribution across the bottom wall for the case with B1 = 5 mm.
40
3D - no pocket
B1 = 5 mm
30 7.5 mm
7.7 mm
8 mm
8.5 mm
p [MPa]
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
In this subsection, 3D linear wedge bearing with two pockets is studied. The top view
B1 Bp B2 Bp
L1
y
x B
The positions of both pockets, B1 and B2 , are varied while the other parameters
In Figure 6.19, pressure field is shown for the case with B1 = 0.7 · 10−2 m. In Figure
6.20, the pressure distribution along the moving wall for y = 0 is shown.
6.6 Conclusions
The work in this Chapter has produced information about fluid behaviour in sharply
pocketed bearings at two levels. It has provided some details of how lubricants flow
and cavitate within fluid film bearings and, in particular, in sharp, closed pockets of
a type not convincingly analysed using Reynolds equation. It has also highlighted the
Table 6.9: Cases of 3D linear wedge with two pockets covering 25% of total area.
Figure 6.19: Pressure distribution across the bottom wall for the case with two pockets
and B1 = 7 mm.
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 129
40
3D - no pockets
B1 = 5 mm, B2 = 2.5 mm
= 6 mm, = 1 mm
30 = 6.5 mm, = 1 mm
= 6.5 mm, = 1.5 mm
= 8 mm, = 0.5 mm
= 7 mm, = 1 mm
p [MPa]
20
10
0
0 5 10 15 20
x [mm]
There appear to be two different ways that the pockets studied can lead to a sig-
nificant friction coefficient reduction. One, which can operate in medium to high
reduce friction more than they reduce load support. To do this, the pockets must be
located in the high pressure region at the rear of the bearing. They must not be so close
to the inlet as to severely limit hydrodynamic pressure build-up. This approach may
thrust bearings. The second mechanism only becomes significant in low convergence,
low load bearings, where the amount of pressure build-up over most of the bearing is
negligible. In this case, the pocket provides a convergent step within the bearing within
which hydrodynamic pressure can develop. This effect is helped by the occurrence of
cavitation at the pocket inlet but, as seen for the K = 0.001, begins to occur even
when no cavitation occurs. This mechanism is essentially the same as that suggested
by Hamilton et al. [33] and later by Etsion et al. [22], based on a Reynolds analysis
This work does not rule out the possible contribution of inertial effects to load
support recently reported by Arghir et al. [4] in bearings with a high density of small
surface roughness features. These effects were, however, evident when the amplitude
and wavelength of roughness were of the same order of magnitude while the current
analysis, the ratio of pocket depth to width was typically only 0.005.
This work is clearly only the first step in the study of textured and pocketed hydro-
dynamic bearings. The pockets studied were always stationary, but there is interest
in the effect of pockets entering and then passing through a contact. The pockets in
this work have very simple, vertical edges, which, as seen in Figure 6.10, are especially
likely to promote cavitation, but which may be difficult to achieve in practical bear-
ings. Despite the limited scope, the work has shown the power of applying a modern
bearing geometries.
6.7 Closure
A CFD model with cavitation has been applied to analyse the flow behaviour, load
support and friction of linear, convergent pad bearings having a closed pocket. This has
shown the development of a boundary layer and fluid recirculation behaviour within
It has been found that cavitation occurs only at very low bearing convergence ratios
and it takes place at the immediate pocket entrance, centred on the sharp recess edge.
A closed pocket of the type studied can produce a reduction in friction coefficient by
pocket in the high pressure region of the bearing reduces shear stress within the pocket
more than its pressure build-up. The result is lower friction and thus a reduced friction
coefficient. This effect increases with pocket height but levels out for a pocket to film
thickness ratio greater than ≈ 20. As the convergence ratio is reduced, an additional
Chapter 6. Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing 131
mechanism for friction coefficient comes into play in which the pocketed bearing has
higher load support (and thus lower friction coefficient) than the non-pocketed case.
regions of the bearing that the pressure rise generated within the pocket due to its
The main concern of this study is finding a suitable computational model to describe the
has been an area of intensive study for the last three decades, it is only recently that
The Reynolds equation has been widely used in lubrication for calculating the
pressure, film thickness, load support and other flow parameters in the high pressure
areas of the bearing. However, its restrictions become evident in the regions far from
the contact zone and if surface roughnesses of the size comparable to the film thickness,
are present. In those cases, the full set of Navier-Stokes equations needs to be solved.
The geometries found in lubrication problems vary significantly from those usually
modelled with the CFD; the aspect ratios found in lubrication can be of order of 103 ,
while the aspect ratios encountered in typical CFD problems are of order of 1. This
meant that the CFD solver had to be validated before applying it to complex geometries
The next step was to create the computational model for the cavitation which occurs
in the divergent region of the bearing, where the pressure drops below the saturation
pressure.
Finally, the suitable solver was employed to computationally model pad bearings
with one or more pockets, the geometry which could not be examined with the Reynolds
equation.
132
Chapter 7. Summary and Conclusions 133
In the following Sections, the summary and conclusions of each Chapter will be
given.
The governing equations of the flow for a Newtonian fluid under isothermal conditions
consist of the conservation of mass and the conservation of momentum. The conser-
diffusive and source term. Depending on the type of the flow, different terms are dom-
inant. If the Reynolds number is low (Rez < 0.1), the diffusive terms are significantly
higher than the convective ones, and vice versa for higher Reynolds numbers.
Due to the high pressures, the viscosity and density stop being constant. The
dependence of density on pressure is relatively weak, but the viscosity can increase by
several orders of magnitude as the pressure gets into the EHL range (> 108 Pa).
In the high pressure region, convective terms and certain viscous terms drop out
from Navier-Stokes equations and the pressure is assumed to be constant across the film
thickness. That leads to the Reynolds equation, which is a suitable tool for solving cases
with smooth geometry in the area near the contact. However, if the surface roughnesses
with the characteristic length comparable to the film thickness are present, the local
aspect ratio becomes much higher and the viscous terms cannot be neglected from
Navier-Stokes equations.
solving the fluid flow in the areas far from the contact region or if the surface rough-
7.2 Discretisation
The Finite Volume method is a well-established numerical procedure, suitable for fluid
method which splits the computational domain into polyhedral control volumes with
a variable number of faces. The governing equations of continuum mechanics are con-
sequently discretised in the integral form over each control volume. The discretisation
is performed in real space, using a fixed Cartesian coordinate system on meshes that
do not change in time. The discretisation uses a colocated variable arrangement, with
The Finite Volume discretisation described above has been applied to fluid flow
problems. The solution algorithm for the Navier-Stokes system is summarised. The
lations. For transient problems, the PISO algorithm has been used.
The Finite Volume method is an approximation of the full solution of the governing
equations. Therefore, there exists an error in the numerical simulations obtained using
this method. The error which arises from the discretisation procedure is estimated by
Richardson Extrapolation. The discretisation error is calculated from the leading term
an analytical solution. Two of them are an infinitely long linear wedge and an infinitely
long step bearing. The analytical solution is useful to validate the numerical results
obtained with the CFD solver. The pressure field and the x-component of the velocity
vector obtained using CFD and the Reynolds equation, have been compared directly,
with the maximum difference being < 1%. The error in the numerical solution for the
as the mesh gets finer in both x and z directions. However, the error decreases more
with grid refinement in the z direction only. Total load and friction per unit length are
calculated from the analytical solution and from the numerical results and again, they
Chapter 7. Summary and Conclusions 135
are in good agreement (the maximum difference is < 0.1% for the finest mesh).
For the linear wedge the mesh consists of one block and it is uniform in both
directions. The geometry is smooth, i.e. it does not have any steep gradients. However,
in the case of step bearing there is a steep geometry of the step, which creates the need
The conclusions to be drawn from the study of these two geometries were that the
CFD software was capable of accurately handling steady state hydrodynamic lubrica-
tion problems. The work also confirmed the assumption of constant pressure across the
film thickness and that the neglect of inertia and certain viscous terms in the Reynolds
equation is justified.
In the case of a roller bearing, the cavitation occurs in the diverging region when the
pressure of the fluid drops below the saturation pressure. As the fluid evaporates, the
density ratio between liquid and vapour phases is of the order of 105 . The sudden
The numerical cavitation method used in this work is a continuum method, where
both phases are considered to be of the same fluid and only one set of governing
equations needs to be solved. This lowers the computational cost considerably. The
conservation of energy equation is used for closure, and the speed of sound of the
mixture is given by the homogeneous equilibrium model. Both liquid and vapour
By integrating the energy equation, one obtains the equation for density dependence
on pressure. The critical feature in determining the gradient of the slope which links
the liquid and vapour phase is the speed of sound in vapour. In order for the model to
be numerically stable, the value of the speed of sound in vapour had to be somewhat
The two cases studied are the pure rolling, full-cylinder and the pure sliding, half-
cylinder. When modelled without the cavitation, the numerical results were in agree-
ment with the Full Sommerfeld solution, as expected. With the cavitation model in-
cluded, the results for the two cases show many similarities. In both cases the pressure
drops below zero in the diverging region and the cavitation does not occur instanta-
neously but gradually over the space of ≈ 0.02R. The difference between the two cases
is that for the pure rolling case, the fluid begins to cavitate closer to the cylinder, while
for the pure sliding case, the fluid starts cavitating in the middle of the film thickness
but evaporates more rapidly from the moving wall. Backflow is present in both cases
The cavitation model used in this work produced results which are qualitatively
correct. That is mainly because of the assumption that the liquid to vapour transition
is the only process of cavitation, because the speed of sound in vapour has unrealistic
value and because the possibility of dissolved gasses in the liquid phase is neglected.
The use of CFD enables us to examine more complex geometries, which could not be
solved with the Reynolds equation. In this study one or more pockets are placed on
the top wall of the simple pad bearing. Their height, size and position are varied, as
well as the convergence ratio of the bearing. The effect of the pockets on the reduction
of the friction coefficient is examined and the following conclusions are made:
• As the height of the pocket increases, both load support and friction decrease.
However, the reduction in load support is much smaller than the reduction in
• The optimum location for the beginning of the pocket is in the middle of the
bearing. If the pocket is too close to the inlet, the pressure build-up is reduced,
Chapter 7. Summary and Conclusions 137
making the load support smaller which has negative effects on the reduction of
• The size of the pocket which gives the biggest reduction in the friction coefficient
• The presence of the pocket with the optimum height, position and size, reduces
the friction coefficient for the pad bearing with all the convergence ratios stud-
ied in this work. However, the pad bearing with smaller convergence ratio can
support smaller load. For the convergence ratio K = 0.001, the fluid cavitates at
the beginning of the pocket. For that case, the pocket acts as a separate bearing
We can conclude that there are two ways that a closed pocket in pad bearing can reduce
and sized pocket reduces friction more than the load support, and in bearings with
low convergence ratios the pocketed bearing has higher load support than in the non-
The results in this study are obtained using several simplifications which are not real-
istic:
• In the cavitation model, the isentropic phase transformation approach was em-
ployed, and it was assumed that the fluid to vapour transition is the only process
of cavitation;
Chapter 7. Summary and Conclusions 138
• The surfaces of the roller bearing were assumed to be infinitely rigid, not allowing
which to continue this work is to improve the present cavitation model. As discussed
in Chapter 5, there are various types of cavitation models used in CFD. The most
elaborate are full multiphase models, which, given the initial sizes and distribution of
cavitation nucleii within the fluid, can calculate the evolution of vapour field, including
growth/collapse, transport by the fluid motion, etc. Employing a model of that type
The next step towards the EHL solution could be the inclusion of elastic deforma-
tion of the surfaces due to the high pressures. There are two main ways of including
(Venner and Lubrecht [69]) and differential deflection (Evans and Hughes [26]). Both
of these methods reduce computational time needed to calculate the flow parameters
and the elastic deformation. In multigrid method, one uses several grids of different
sizes to smooth the iterative errors. The central point is that error components with
wavelengths which are comparable to the grid size are reduced efficiently, and those
with large wavelengths compared to the mesh size converge slowly. The basis of multi-
grid solutions method is to use coarser grids to solve the smooth error components,
in each point of the domain. In the same way, the second-order differential equation
to decay at a much higher rate as the modulus of the index increases from zero than
Chapter 7. Summary and Conclusions 139
The inclusion of piezo-viscous effects could be the next step, followed by the intro-
duction of thermal effects. This would mean that the algorithm for the EHL problem
with piezo-viscous and thermal effects is developed. This CFD-solver could then be
Bibliography
[1] Almqvist, T. and Larsson, R.: “The Navier-Stokes Approach for Thermal EHL
[2] Almqvist, T.; Glavatskikh, S. B.; Larsson, R.: “THD Analysis of Tilting Pad
[3] Apfel, R. E.: “The Tensile Strength of Liquids”, Scientific American, 227, pp.
58-71, 1972.
[4] Arghir, M., Rouscou, N., Helene, M. and Frene, J.: “Theoretical Analysis of the
[5] Avva, R. K.; Singhal, A.; Gibson, D. H.: “An Enthalpy Based Model of Cavita-
[6] Ball, S. J.; Trusler, J. P. M.: “Speed of Sound of n-Hexane and n-Hexadecane at
Temperatures Between 298 and 373 K and Pressures up to 100 MPa”, Interna-
[7] Barus, C.,: “Isothermals, Isopiestics and Isometrics Relative to Viscosity”, Am.
[10] Brandt, A. and Lubrecht, A. A.: “Multilevel Matrix Multiplication and Fast
[11] Cameron, A. and Wood, W. L.: “The Full Journal Bearing”, IProc. IMechE, 26,
[12] Cameron, A.: “The Principles of Lubrication”, Longman Green and co,ltd, Lon-
don, 1966.
[13] Cameron, A. and Ettles, C. M. Mc.: “Basic Lubrication Theory”, 3rd Edition,
Chapter 5, pp. 70, 74. publ. Ellis Horwood, Chichester, UK, 1981
[15] Chen, P. Y. P. and Hahn, E. J.: “Use of Computational Fluid Dynamics in Hydro-
[16] Chen, Y.; Heister, S. D.: “A Numerical Treatment for Attached Cavitation”, J.
[17] Delannoy, Y.; Kueny, J. L.: “Two Phase Flow Approach in Unsteady Cavitation
Modeling”, Cavitation and Multiphase Flow Forum, ASME FED , 98, pp. 153-158,
1990.
[18] Dowson, D.: “History of Tribology”, Longman Group Limited, London, 1979.
[20] Elcoate, C.D., Evans, H.P., Hughes, T. G.: “On the Coupling of the Elastohy-
drodynamic Problem,”, Proc. Instn. Mech. Engrs, Part C, 212(C), pp. 307-318,
1998.
[22] Etsion, I., Kligerman, Y. and Halperin, G.: “Analytical and Experimental In-
[23] Etsion, I.: “Laser Surface Texturing - Measure to Reduce Friction”, Proc. 14th
Intern. Colloq. Tribology, publ. Tech. Acad. Esslingen ed. W. J. Bartz, Jan. 2004
a Differential Method,”, Proc. Instn. Mech. Engrs, Part C, 214(C), pp. 563-584,
2000.
[27] Faber, T. E.: Fluid Dynamics for Physicists: Cambridge University Press, 1995
[28] Ferziger, J.H. and Perić, M.: Computational Methods for Fluid Dynamics:
[29] Gohar, R.: Elastohydrodynamics: Ellis Horwood Limited, Chichester, UK, 1988.
143
[30] Goloch, R., Merker, G.P., Kesses, U. and Brinkmann, S.: “Benefits of Laser-
Structured Cylinder Liners for Internal Combustion Engines”, Proc. 14th Intern.
[31] Grubin, A. N., and Vinogradova, I. E.: “Investigation of the Contact of Machine
1949.
357, 1916.
Hill, 1994.
[37] Hertz, H.: “Über die Berührung Fester Elastischer Körper,”J. reine und angew.
[38] Hestens, M. R. and Steifel, E. L.: “Method of Conjugate Gradients for Solving
[39] Hughes, T. G., Evans, H.P.: “Coupled Solution of the Elastohydrodynamic Line
144
[40] Issa, R. I.: “Solution of the Implicitly Discretized Fluid Flow Equations by
[41] Jacobs, D. A. H.: “Preconditioned Conjugate Gradient Methods for Solving Sys-
RD/L/N193/80, 1980.
[42] Jasak, H.: Error Analysis and Estimation for the Finite Volume Method with
1996.
Sweden, 1999.
[46] Kovalchenko, A., Ajayi, O., Erdemir, A., Fenske, G. and Etsion, I. “The Effect of
[47] Kubota, A.; Kato, H.; Yamaguchi, H.: “Finite Difference Analysis of Unsteady
[48] Lubrecht,A. A., ten Napel, W. E. and Bosma, R.: “Multigrid, and Alternative
[49] Lubrecht, A. A.: “Numerical solution of the EHL Line and Point Contact Problem
1987.
[50] Martin, H. M.: “Lubrication of Gear Teeth”, Engineering, 102, pp. 119-121, 1916.
[51] Muzaferija, S.: Adaptive Finite Volume Method for Flow Prediction Using Un-
structured Meshes and Multigrid Approach, PhD thesis, Imperial College, Univer-
[52] Patankar, S.V.: Numerical Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow, Hemisphere Publishing
Corporation, 1981.
[53] Perić, M.: A Finite Volume Method for the Prediction of Three-Dimensional Fluid
Flow in Complex Ducts, PhD thesis, Imperial College, University of London, 1985.
[55] Reynolds, O.: “On the Theory of Lubrication and its Application to Mr.
the Viscosity of Olive Oil”, Phil. Trans, 177, pp. 157-234, 1886.
[56] Rhim, Y. and Tichy, J. A.: “Entry Flow into a Slider Bearing - Analysis and
[57] Rider, W. J.; Kothe, D. B.: “Stretching and Tearing Interface Tracking Methods”,
[58] Ronen, A., Etsion, I. and Kligerman, Y.: “Friction Reducing Surface Texturing in
2001.
[59] Ryk, G., Kligerman, Y. and Etsion, I.: “Experimental Investigation of Laser
[61] Schäfer, C. T., Giese, P., Rowe, W. B. and Woolley, N. H.: “ Elastohydrodynam-
Films and Tribological Interfaces D.Dowson et al. (Editors), Elsevier Science B.V.,
2000.
[62] Schmidt, D. P.; Rutland, C. J.; Corradini, M. L.: “A Fully Compressible, Two-
[64] Tower, B.: “First Report on Friction Experiments (Friction of Lubricated Bear-
[65] Van Der Vorst, H. A.: “Bi-CGSTAB: A Fast and Smoothly Converging Variant
[66] van Odyck, D. E. A.: “Stokes Flow in Thin Films”, PhD thesis, University of
[67] van Odyck, D. E. A., Venner C. H.: “Compressible Stokes Flow in Thin Films”,
[68] Venner, C. H.: “Multilevel Solution of the EHL Line and Point Contact Problems”,
[72] Wang, X., Kato, K., Adachi, K. and Aizawa, K.: “The Effect of Laser Texturing
of SiC Surface on the Critical Load for the Transition of Water Lubrication Mode
[73] Weller, H., Tabor, G., Jasak, H. and Fureby, C.: “A Tensorial Approach to Com-
[74] Zhang, J. X. and Rodkiewicz, C. M.: “On the Design of Thrust Bearings Using a
List of Publications
Brajdic-Mitidieri, P., Gosman A. D., Ioannides, E., Spikes, H.A.: “CFD Analysis of a
Low Friction Pocketed Pad Bearing”, Journal of Tribology, Transactions of the ASME,