Elastohydrodynamic lubrication analysis of layered line contact by the boundary element method

This paper presents a numerical routine to compute the contact characteristics of elastomer layered cylinders lubricated by isoviscous liquids. The indentation of the elastic layer is calculated from boundary integral equations which are solved by linear and quadratic boundary element methods for a finite plane model and a circular representation of the junction. The hydrodynamic equation is also transformed into a boundary integral equation and solved by Simpson's rule. Some factors which possibly affect numerical accuracy are examined. Examples for finite plane and circular layer are analysed with reference to parameters for printing press roller contact, in which results are obtained for the indentation, film thickness and liquid pressure, as well as internal stresses through the simultaneous solution of the elasticity and hydrodynamic equations. The results show that high precision is easily achieved and the method is efficient for such layered problems.