The effect of piston skirt tooling marks on hydrodynamic lubrication at small clearances in internal combustion engines

Abstract

The effect of piston tooling marks on pressure generation and oil transport at the piston skirt-cylinder bore interface, in internal combustion engines, is investigated using direct numerical simulation. At small clearances (h/Ω ˜ 1), the resulting pressure variations are large, and significant small-scale cavitation occurs. Comparison with results obtained using Patir & Cheng’s flow factor model highlight differences around the peak pressure and small-scale cavitation regions.

Keywords:

• Hydrodynamic lubrication
• surface texture
• Reynolds Equation
• Average Reynolds Equation
• Internal combustion engines
• Piston
• oil fi lm thickness
• oil transport
• friction

Additional information

Notes on contributors

F McClure

Dr Fiona McClure recently completed her PhD on the topic of “Numerical Modelling of Piston Dynamics and Skirt Lubrication in Internal Combustion Engines” at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA. She is now a lecturer in the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. She previously completed her MEng at McGill University, Montreal, Canada, and BS/BEng at The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia. Her current research interests include sustainable energy, wind turbine wake modelling, and the analysis and modelling of tribological systems.

Y Li

Yong Li is currently completing his PhD at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the area of modelling of lubricant transport in metal face seals. He completed his MS and BS at Peking University.

T Tian

Dr Tian Tian is currently employed as a principal research engineer in the Sloan Automotive Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, USA. He completed his PhD at MIT in the area of Ring-Pack Dynamics, and his MS and BS at Peking University. His current research interests include the analysis and modelling of tribo-systems; engine component dynamics, lubricant transport, lubrication, friction and oil consumption; and lubrication of mechanical face seals.