VISCOELASTOHYDRODYNAMIC LUBRICATION OF LINE CONTACTS

A numerical solution for the visco-elastohydrodynamic lubrication prob lem of line contacts is introduced. The surface displacements of the b ounding solids are calculated from the linear viscoelastic half-space theory. A standard linear model is used to characterize the viscoelast ic behavior of the bounding solids. The mathematical formulation of vi sco-elastohydrodynamic lubrication is based mainly on solving the Reyn olds equation coupled with the viscoelasticity equations. The proposed mathematical model is solved numerically by using an iterative Newton -Raphson scheme. The effects of viscoelastic behavior of the bounding solids on the pressure profiles and film shapes are presented and disc ussed.