A Comparative Thermal Analysis of Slot-Entry and Hole-Entry Hybrid Journal Bearings Lubricated With Non-Newtonian Lubricant

The effect of viscosity variation due to temperature rise and non-Newtonian behavior of the lubricant on the performance of hole-entry and slot-entry hybrid journal bearings system is the focus of this investigation. The performance characteristics of nonrecessed hybrid journal bearings operating with different flow controlling devices, i.e., constant flow valve, capillary, orifice, and slot restrictors, have been compared. Finite element method has been used to solve the Reynolds equation governing the flow of lubricant in the bearing clearance space along with the restrictor flow equation, energy equation and conduction equation using suitable iterative technique. The non-Newtonian lubricant has been assumed to follow the cubic shear stress law. The results indicate that variation in viscosity due to rise in temperature and non-Newtonian behavior of the lubricant affects the performance of nonrecessed hybrid journal bearing system quite significantly. The results further indicate that bearing performance can be improved by selecting a particular bearing configuration in conjunction with a suitable compensating device.