Analyzing Micropolar Lubrication in Noncircular Hybrid Journal Bearings

Abstract

Hydrostatic bearings are widely applied in high-speed applications due to their high precision and high stiffness characteristics. In order to make hydrostatic bearings suitable for high-speed operation, system instability must be addressed. A noncircular bearing configuration goes a step further toward better dynamic performance characteristics in comparison to circular bearings. The present work deals with the theoretical analysis of a four-recess noncircular capillary-compensated hybrid journal bearing operating with a micropolar lubricant. The finite element method is used to solve the modified Reynolds equation for micropolar fluids. The study is carried out for different values of micropolar parameters; that is, characteristic length and coupling number. The study suggests that a noncircular bearing configuration operating with a micropolar lubricant offers better performance compared to operation with a Newtonian lubricant.

KEY WORDS:

• Journal Bearings
• Multilobe Bearings
• Non-Newtonian Effects in Hybrid Bearings