Virial Approximation for Load and Loss in High-Speed Journal Bearings Using Pressurized Gases

TR Number
Date
2019-02-17
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
MDPI
Abstract

We consider steady, laminar, compressible lubrication flows in a high-speed two-dimensional journal bearing governed by the appropriate Reynolds equation. The thermodynamic states correspond to pressurized gases and are in the single-phase regime. Simple explicit formulas for the load capacity, power loss, and attitude angle are derived by applying the virial (or small density) expansions of pressure and shear viscosity to results developed in previous studies. The present virial approximation was compared to the exact numerical solutions to the Reynolds equation. It was shown that the results based on our virial expansions are quite accurate at thermodynamic states corresponding to dense and supercritical gases. The first virial correction is seen to significantly improve predictions based on the ideal gas theory.

Description
Keywords
fluid mechanics, supercritical fluids, virial expansion, compressible lubrication, low Reynolds number
Citation
Chien, S.-Y.; Cramer, M.S. Virial Approximation for Load and Loss in High-Speed Journal Bearings Using Pressurized Gases. Fluids 2019, 4, 27.