Numerical study of transient elastohydrodynamic lubrication subjected to sinusoidal dynamic loads for rough contact surfaces

The purpose of this paper is to study the behaviour of transient elastohydrodynamic contacts subjected to forced harmonic vibrations, including the effect of surface waviness for concentrated counterformal point contact under isothermal conditions. Profiles of pressure and film thickness are studied to reveal the combined effects of sinusoidal external load and surface roughness on the lubrication problem. The time-dependent Reynolds' equation is solved using Newton–Raphson technique. The film thickness and pressure distribution are obtained at different snap shots of time by simultaneous solution of the Reynolds’ equation and film thickness equation including elastic deformation and surface waviness. It is concluded that the coupling effects of the transient sinusoidal external load and wavy surface would result in increase in modulations of the pressure and film thickness profile in comparison to the case where the smooth contact surfaces are subjected to sinusoidal external load.