THD Analysis of Rolling Piston and Journal Bearings in Rotary Compressors

A numerical analysis of the thermohydrodynamic lubrication of a rolling piston and two misaligned journal bearings in a rotary compressor has been carried out. The temperature rise of the oil film was calculated according to the transient energy equation of viscous fluid, and coupled analysis with the hydrodynamic lubrication of the rolling piston and journal bearings was conducted by using the finite element method and finite difference method. The distributions of the pressure and temperature rise of the oil film for several cycles were calculated. The analysis results show that for the journal bearings, the temperature of the oil film rises with the increase in pressure, the highest temperature appears around the region of the maximum pressure, whereas for the rolling piston bearing, there is a sharp peak in the temperature distribution. The maximum temperature in the oil film varies periodically with the rotation of the crankshaft, and after several cycles the balance between viscous heating and heat dissipation is achieved. The thermal analysis results were compared with those of the isothermal analysis. It is found that the difference in lubrication performance between the thermal and isothermal cases is relative small, due to the mild temperature rise in the bearing system.