A study of a journal bearing lubricated by couple stress fluids considering thermal and cavitation effects

AbstractA theoretical study of a finite grooved journal bearing lubricated with couple stress fluids is made considering both thermal and cavitation effects. On the basis of the Stokes couple stress fluid model, the modified Reynolds equation and the energy equation are derived and then numerically solved together with the heat conduction equation. The solution to the modified Reynolds equation is determined using the Elrod cavitation algorithm. The effects of couple stress on the performance of a journal bearing are investigated. It is observed that the lubricants with couple stress, compared with Newtonian lubricants, not only yield an obvious increase in load capacity and decrease in coefficient of friction but also produce a slight increase in the temperature of lubricants and bush and a slight decrease in the side leakage flow.