Contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength and its critical importance in elastohydrodynamic lubrication

Abstract

PurposeTo review, analyze and present the effects of the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength and contact‐fluid interfacial slippage and the critical importance of these effects in elastohydrodynamic lubrication (EHL).Design/methodology/approachThe experimental and theoretical research results of the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength and its caused contact‐fluid interfacial slippage in hydrodynamic lubrication and especially in EHL obtained in the past decades and progressed in recent years by the present author and by others are reviewed. Analysis and presentation are made on both the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength versus fluid pressure curve for a given bulk fluid temperature in an isothermal EHL and the influence of the bulk fluid temperature on this curve.FindingsIt is very clearly and well understood from the present paper that the value of the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength in the inlet zone in an EHL contact, i.e. at low EHL fluid film pressures is usually low and usually has rather a weak dependence on the EHL fluid film pressure. This proves the correctness of the EHL theories previously developed by the author based on the assumption of this low value and dependence on the EHL fluid film pressure of the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength. It is also very clearly understood that the bulk fluid temperature usually has a strong influence on the value of the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength in EHL and the increase of this temperature usually significantly reduces the value of the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength in EHL.Practical implicationsA very useful material for the engineers who are engaged in the design of EHL on gears, cams and roller bearings, and for the tribology scientists who thrust efforts in studying EHL and mixed EHL both by theoretical modeling and by experiments.Originality/valueA new and generalized mode of mixed EHL is originally proposed by incorporating the finding of a more realistic mode of the contact regimes in a practical mixed EHL based on the contact‐fluid interfacial shear strength and contact‐fluid interfacial slippage effects. This mode of mixed EHL should become the direction of the theoretical research of mixed EHL in the future.