A Brief Comparison of the Accuracy of Time-Dependent Integration Schemes for the Reynolds Equation

Abstract : Two dynamic methods are compared for integrating the Reynolds equation as applied to determining the axial dynamics of a spool bearing. It is shown that very sensitive phase shifts in the numerical schemes can badly falsify the dynamics; therefore, care is needed in interpreting results using classical methods. Second order temporal accuracy can alleviate these problems; one such scheme is presented with excellent phase properties that is just as computationally efficient per time step as any of the first order accurate schemes.