Study on mixing flow effects in a high-speed journal bearing

The influence of turbulence on journal bearing operation is examined. The thermal variability is studied for isothermal, convective and adiabatic conditions on the walls under aligned and misaligned conditions. Also, a contraction ratio at the cavitation region and the mixing between re-circulating oil and inlet oil are included. An algorithm for the solution of the coupled turbulent Reynolds and energy equations is used to examine the effects of the various factors. Heat convection is found to play but a small role in determining friction and load under no mixing condition. However, under realistic mixing condition, the heat convection may not be ignored. The wall temperature and heat transfer have been found to be of secondary importance to the mixing effectiveness at the groove and the final mixture temperature.