Elastohydrodynamic Analysis of an Offset Journal Bearing Lubricated with Couple Stress Fluid

This work is an investigation of the performance characteristics of an offset journal bearing lubricated with a fluid with couple stresses taking into consideration the elastic deformation of the liner. The couple stresses might be expected to appear in noticeable magnitudes in liquids containing additives with large molecules. The modified Reynolds equation has been solved using the finite difference method. Load carrying capacity, attitude angle, side leakage and friction coefficients are determined for various values of couple stress parameter of a rigid and deformable bearing. It is found that, the static characteristics of journal bearings lubricated with couple stress fluids are improved compared to journal bearings lubricated with Newtonian fluids. It is concluded that, the elastic deformation of the bearing has significant influence on the bearing characteristics.