Thermoelastohydrodynamic (TEHD) Analysis of a Grooved Thrust Washer

Abstract

A numerical model is developed to analyze the influence of thermal deformations on the performance of a radially grooved thrust washer. The analysis couples the flow phenomena (including cavitation) in the lubricant with the heat transfer in both the fluid and solid media, as well as with the thermally induced deformations in the solid parts. The finite element method (both two-dimensional and three-dimensional, with linear and quadratic shape functions) is used to solve the Reynolds equation for flow, the energy equation for temperature and the thermo-elasticity equations for deformations in the solid. Grid coupling is achieved by using a Newton-Raphson iteration. Realistic boundary conditions and geometry are used for the fluid and solid domains. The results show that, for the case of a properly shaped stator, the thermal deformations can lead to an increase in bearing performance.