A Comparison Study on the Performance of Four Types of Oil Lubricated Hydrodynamic Thrust Bearings for Hard Disk Spindles

Abstract

In this paper, the static and dynamic performance of herringbone, step-pocket, taper-pocket, and taper-flat thrust bearings were numerically analyzed. Optimal values for the design parameters of each type of bearing were analyzed in terms of both maximum axial stiffness (kzz ) and maximum ratio of axial stiffness to friction torque (kzz /T) and bearing performance for both cases was calculated. The optimal performance characteristics of these bearings were compared in terms of application to hard disk spindles. Step-pocket and taper-pocket thrust bearings are superior to herringbone and taper-flat thrust bearings with respect to both the maximum kkk and the maximum kzz /T conditions. It was found that the dams of thrust bearings with pockets play an important part in improving the hearing performance. It was made clear that the taper-pocket and the taper-flat thrust bearings have a much larger load capacity than the other two types of thrust bearings in the proximity of zero clearance.