Study of two‐lobe four recessed hybrid journal bearing

Abstract

Purpose

In recent years, researchers have focused a great deal of attention on multirecess hybrid journal bearing systems. The non‐circular journal bearings are widely used in industry on account of their better stability, simplicity, efficiency and low cost. The purpose of this paper is to present a theoretical investigation into the performance of a two‐lobe multirecess hybrid journal bearing system.

Design/methodology/approach

The Reynold's equation governing the lubricant flow in the clearance space between the journal and bearing together with restrictor flow equations has been solved using finite element method. The bearing static and dynamic performance characteristics have been presented for the various values of the offset factors (0.75, 1, 1.25 and 1.50) for the hybrid mode of operation of the journal bearing system compensated by capillary and orifice restrictors for the commonly used bearing operating and geometric parameters. The offset of the journal has been accounted for by defining a non‐dimensional factor called offset factor delta.

Findings

The numerically simulated results indicate that a two‐lobe four recessed hybrid journal bearing provides a better performance than the corresponding similar circular recessed journal bearing system. The study further reveals that in order to get an improved performance of a two‐lobe four recessed journal bearing, a proper selection of bearing offset factors along with type of restrictor (capillary or orifice) is essential.

Originality/value

The results presented in this paper are useful for bearing designers.

Citation

Jain, S., Sharma, S., Sharana Basavaraja, J. and Kushare, P. (2010), "Study of two‐lobe four recessed hybrid journal bearing", Industrial Lubrication and Tribology, Vol. 62 No. 6, pp. 332-340. https://doi.org/10.1108/00368791011076227