NON-NEWTONIAN ELASTOHYDRODYNAMIC LUBRICATION OF POINT CONTACT

A numerical solution to the problem of isothermal non-Newtonian elastohydrodynamic lubrication of rolling/sliding point contacts has been obtained. The multigrid technique is used to solve the simultaneous system of two-dimensional modified Reynolds and elasticity equations. The effects of various loads, speeds, and slide to roll ratios on the pressure distribution, film thickness, and friction force have been investigated. Results for the dimensionless load W = 4.6 x 10(-6) and 1.1 x 10(-6), and the dimensionless velocity U = 3 x 10(-10) and 3 x 10(-11) are presented. The results indicate that slide to roll ratio has negligible effect on the minimum film thickness, however, it significantly reduces the pressure spike.