Elastohydrodynamic Lubrication between Two Rotating Cylinders with Non-Newtonian Fluids

Abstract

It is the purpose of this paper to predict an approximate theoretical solution for non-Newtonian problems of the elastohydrodynamic lubrication because such a theory is not established in a form suitable for application to this kind of fluids. The approximate analytical procedure in this paper is made possible by introducing the elastic deformation due to the film pressure in the inlet region between heavily loaded rotating cylinders into Grubin's approach. Pressure dependence of the viscosity and the nonlinearity of non-Newtonian fluids are measured by using a high pressure viscometer. The information obtained is useful to predict the theoretical film thickness of the elastohydrodynamic contact to compare with the experimental values. Experiment and theory are in approximate agreement over most of the range of the film thickness between two rotating cylinders.