Prediction of pressure-viscosity coefficient of lubricating oils based on sound velocity

The pressure-viscosity coefficient is an important parameter in tribology. Experimentally, it is calculated using the high-pressure viscosity measurement. Also, the adiabatic bulk modulus is calculated using the sound velocity in the lubricating oil. Several lubricating oils are considered on the group basis such as traction oil, mineral oil, polyalphaolefin oil, perfluoropolyether oil and glycerol depending on their molecular structure. Experimental pressure-viscosity coefficient is compared with the adiabatic bulk modulus. It is found that the pressure-viscosity coefficient increases exponentially with the adiabatic bulk modulus, and the relationship depends on the molecular structure of the lubricating oils. This study proposes two equations to predict the pressure-viscosity coefficient from the adiabatic bulk modulus based on sound velocity, one for the traction oil, and another for the paraffinic mineral oil and the polyalphaolefin oil. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.